LOL: What does it mean to torture players?

"At this moment, EDG, holding three match points, is only one step away from returning to the finals! As for JDG, they are standing on the absolute edge of a cliff; one step back means an abyss!" Guan Zeyuan said loudly, his voice carrying a strong sense of urgency.

"Yes, after losing the first two games, JDG had the loser's pick in the third game. But to everyone's surprise, they gave up the blue side with the first pick advantage and chose the red side instead!" Miller pushed up his glasses, a hint of surprise flashing in his eyes. "Is Coach Homme trying to save the last counter pick for 369, so that he can pick a comfortable hero in the top lane to deal with Mozi?"

"If that's the case, then EDG will be on the blue side. This means that Mozi has to reveal his trump card in the first three picks, or even the first pick!" Remember analyzed. "But this is Su Mo! His hero pool is bottomless. If you let him pick first, is he really afraid of being countered?"

On the big screen, the image shifted to the drafting and banning (BP) interface for the do-or-die game.

"Alright! The draft and ban phases for both sides shall now begin!"

The director's camera instantly split in two, showing EDG looking calm on the left and JDG looking serious on the right.

"EDG, blue side, first ban, first pick! First pick, Coach Mingkai is very targeted, directly banning Knight's recently hot [Neko, the Radiant One]!" Guan Zeyuan quickly got into the zone.

It's JDG's turn to ban the first item.

Coach Homme stood behind 369 and, without hesitation, declared: "Ban Fiora!"

"Clang!" The image of the Peerless Swordswoman went gray.

Immediately afterwards, EDG banned Missing's signature initiation support, [Rongtie Girl Rui'er], as their second pick.

JDG's second pick was another ruthless ban: "Ban Jax!"

"Two more bans targeting the top lane!" Miller's voice rose slightly. "Let's look at EDG's third pick. They banned Orianna, completely locking down Knight's typical hard carry mage!"

The pressure came down to JDG's final ban in the first round.

Coach Homme took a deep breath, glanced at 369 who had been treated like a sports car in the last game, and gritted his teeth, saying, "Suppress Vayne too! We absolutely cannot let him get a long-range weapon to fight a short-range one!"

"Clang!" The Night Hunter was sealed in the small dark room!

"Three bans on top lane!!!" Remember gasped on the commentary stage and shouted, "Even with the red side's fifth pick as a counter, JDG still managed to execute an extreme three bans on top lane in the first round! Fiora, Jax, and Vayne are all gone! They've etched their fear of Mozi into their very bones!"

"Now it's EDG's turn to pick first!" Guan Zeyuan stared intently at the screen. "The strong junglers Maokai and Sejuani are all there, and the Xayah and Rakan duo is also on the field! What should EDG pick first?!"

EDG's match lineup.

Mingkai, holding a tactical board, bent down and looked at Su Mo: "Mozi, the enemy team has shut down all your signature champions. Should we pick Quesanti for you on the first floor? Or should we take Maokai first and let A-Chen stabilize the jungle?"

Su Mo leaned back in his gaming chair, his long, slender fingers gently stroking his chin. His deep eyes swept over the dense array of hero icons on the screen, and a rare, even slightly mischievous, smile suddenly appeared at the corner of his mouth.

“Coach,” Su Mo said softly, his voice calm, “Since they’re so afraid of me using long-range attacks against short-range ones, then I’ll grant their wish.”

"Moreover, since it's a life-or-death situation, I want to give them some... extreme mental torture."

He turned to look at Meiko, who was sitting on the far side.

"Tianye, get me that."

Meiko followed Su Mo's finger pointing at the screen, her eyes widening instantly, and even the hand holding the mouse trembled.

"Mo, Mo-ge... are you serious?! This is the match point of the semifinals! If you pick this hero, the opposing team's mentality probably hasn't collapsed yet, but JDG's fans can come through the internet and tear us apart!"

"Lock." Su Mo uttered only one word, yet it carried an undeniable air of authority.

Meiko swallowed hard, then swiped her mouse and clicked on a small, furry avatar.

next second!
A cheerful, even slightly cheeky, clear child's voice boomed throughout the Olympic Stadium's sound system!
"Captain Teemo! He's on standby!"

Swift Scout – Teemo!!!
locking!!!

"boom--!!!"

In that instant, it was as if a nuclear bomb had been dropped on the entire Busan Gymnasium!
The previously noisy scene erupted into a deafening roar that seemed to shake the heavens after a full two seconds of deathly silence! All the LPL fans, LCK viewers, and even the photographers in the front row stood up in shock!
The three commentators in the commentary booth went completely crazy.

"Teemo?!?!" Guan Zeyuan clutched his head, his eyes nearly bulging out of their sockets, his voice cracking, "My God! EDG on the first floor, blindly picked Teemo?! Was it a slip of the hand?! Director! This really was a slip of the hand, right?!"

"No rematch request was submitted!! Time is still ticking!!" Miller roared hoarsely, "Mozi in the semifinals of the S13 World Championship! In the match point game against JDG! First pick Teemo!! What kind of incredibly outrageous move is this?! It's insane!! He's playing the World Championship like it's a bronze game!!"

"This is absolutely psychological warfare!! This is absolutely psychological warfare!!" Remember was so excited his face turned red. "JDG banned three top laners in a row, trying to limit Mozi. But Mozi countered by picking the most mentally destructive and disgusting champion in all of League of Legends! He not only wants to beat you mechanically, he also wants to completely destroy you mentally!!"

At the same time, the barrage of comments in various live streaming rooms had turned into a dense torrent, almost crashing the broadcast servers:

【？？？？？？？？？？？】

[Holy crap! Holy crap! Holy crap! Holy crap!! I can't believe I'm seeing Teemo in the World Championship semifinals?!]

[I'm bowing down to God!! This is real ribbing! You want some guts? I'll plant a whole bunch of mushrooms in your path!]

[369's expression right now must be priceless, hahaha, after a lifetime of professional gaming, he got schooled by Teemo in a do-or-die game!]

[That's too arrogant! First floor blindly picks Teemo! Mozi: Pick any counter you want, I'll eat my hat if I can't beat you!]

The camera cruelly cut to the soundproof booth of JDG.

The moment he saw Timo lock on, head coach Homme's expression froze completely, and the tactical board in his hand fell to the ground with a "thud".

“Damn it…” Kanavi couldn’t help but curse over the voice chat, his face full of disbelief, “Who does he think he is?! Using such trash heroes to fight us?!”

369's round face turned pale and then flushed.

If it were Fiora or Jax, he might just feel inferior. But now, the opposing team, in front of the whole world, picked Teemo first and let him lane against them!

This is even more humiliating than standing in front of him and slapping him twice!

"Coach... he's too arrogant!" 369 gritted his teeth, a raging fire burning in his eyes. "Give me a warrior this game! I'm going to smash that Teemo shit to pieces!!" Homme took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down: "Don't rush! Teemo is useless in team fights! Since he dares to pick such a squishy champion, we'll pick a strong dive champion! We'll make sure he doesn't even have a place to grow mushrooms!"

"First and second floors, just grab the big tree and Jayce!"

JDG's first and second picks were instantly locked: Jungler [Twisted Treant Maokai] and Mid Laner [Tomorrow Guardian Jayce]!
"JDG has secured a strong mid-jungle synergy with Maokai and Jayce! Their poke and engage combos are very solid!"

It's EDG's turn on the second and third floors.

"Ah Chen, what do you want to play?" Mingkai asked with a smile, and the atmosphere in the team had completely relaxed because of this Teemo.

"Brother Mo is pulling out all the stops, I can't back down! Give me Lee Sin! I'll protect the top laner and kick him!" Ah Chen shouted excitedly.

Where is Jack?

"Xia! Is there even a question? If they dare to charge, I'll kill them!"

EDG's second and third picks are: Jungler [Lee Sin] and ADC [Xayah].

JDG's third pick was Missing, who didn't hesitate and immediately locked in her most confident initiation and roaming support: [Phantom Feather Rakan].

The first round of banning and pruning has ended, and the second round of banning has begun.

JDG, the red team, will ban first.

"Ban Akali and Azir!" Coach Homme stared intently at the screen. "Teemo has no hard crowd control, we must suppress EDG's mid-lane assassin from entering the fight!"

On EDG's side, they banned [Zeli] and [Kai'Sa] in the fourth and fifth picks, directly banning all the meta-leading AD carries that Ruler can carry with.

The second round of selection begins!
On the fourth floor of JDG, Ruler, with his champion pool compressed, could only lock in a late-game carry: [Aphelios, the Reaper of the Crescent Moon].

"EDG's last two picks!" Guan Zeyuan stared intently at the screen. "Support and mid lane, what will Meiko and Xiaoyue use to complement this somewhat unusual lineup?"

"Tianye, get Titan to supplement hard crowd control. Xiaoyue, get Sylas." Su Mo remained calm and composed, taking a sip of water.

"understand!"

EDG's fourth and fifth picks are: Support [Nautilus] and Mid [Sylas].

"Sylas!!" Miller's eyes lit up. "Xiao Yue's Sylas pick was brilliant! JDG has Maokai's vines and Rakan's Flash of Light, all of which are god-tier ultimate abilities that Sylas loves to steal! EDG's lineup is incredibly powerful!"

Now, all the suspense is focused on the fifth-floor counter position for the red team, JDG!

Coach Homme stood behind 369, his voice low: "369, what do you want? Teemo has a long range and a blind, making him difficult to deal with auto-attack-based fighters like Renekton and Jax. We need a champion who deals damage through skills, has self-healing, or burst damage!"

369 stared intently at the grinning Teemo avatar on the screen, countless options flashing through his mind.

Aatrox? Olaf? Pantheon?
Finally, his gaze settled on a head wielding a giant sword, as ferocious as a demon.

"Get me Aatrox! Aatrox!" 369's voice carried a desperate, ruthless edge. "His blind won't work on me. As long as I land a Q on him, that squishy little guy is doomed!"

"when!"

Aatrox, the Darkin Blademaster! Locked on!

"Aatrox!! 369 picked Aatrox on the fifth floor to counter Teemo!!" Remember loudly analyzed, "This is a very classic and useful counter! Teemo's Q skill [Blinding Dart] only makes him immune to basic attack damage, but 90% of Aatrox's damage comes from the three-stage ground slam of his Q skill! Moreover, Aatrox has the dash of his E skill, and with Maokai's gank, Teemo, who has no mobility and short legs, is dead once caught!"

The lineups for both sides have been finalized!

Blue side EDG: Top lane Teemo, Jungle Lee Sin, Mid lane Sylas, ADC Xayah, Support Nautilus.

JDG (Red Team): Top laner Aatrox, Jungler Maokai, Mid laner Jayce, ADC Aphelios, Support Rakan.

As the countdown ended, the large screen at the venue displayed the game loading screen.

The director very considerately gave the split-screen close-up to the two top laners.

Su Mo on the left maintained his unwavering indifferent expression. He wore blue light blocking glasses, rested his chin on one hand, and casually placed his left hand on the keyboard, showing no sign that he was fighting a life-or-death battle that would determine whether he could advance to the S-series finals.

Meanwhile, 369 on the right was taking deep breaths frantically. He was biting his fingers, leaning forward slightly, his eyes fixed on the screen, as if he wanted to devour Teemo alive with his gaze.

"It's too extreme. The emotions of the top laners on both sides are completely opposite." Guan Zeyuan shook his head with a wry smile. "Mozi played the psychological warfare so well. No matter how Teemo performs this game, 369's mentality was already under unimaginable pressure the moment the draft ended. He picked Aatrox to counter Teemo. If he wins, everyone will think it's a given; but if he loses... then his professional career will be left with an indelible shadow."

Welcome to Summoner's Rift!

Accompanied by a rousing female voice announcement, ten beams of light descended from the spring.

Without the slightest hesitation, Su Mo bought a Doran's Ring and two health potions, and controlled the bouncy little Yordle to head straight for the top lane.

"Chen, start with red buff and farm up." Su Mo calmly gave the instructions in the voice chat, as if he wasn't playing a squishy Teemo walking a tightrope. "Mao will definitely gank me hard in the early game this game. You don't need to counter-gank. Go farm his bottom half of the map and kill Ruler in the bottom lane."

"Huh? Brother Mo, what if you get ganked by Maokai and Aatrox in the top lane?" Ah Chen was taken aback. Maokai and Aatrox, those two heroes have an extremely terrifying control chain.

"Take care of me?" Su Mo's lips curled into a faint, cold smile. "That depends on whether they have the life to get to me."

At 1 minute and 30 seconds, the lanes meet.

369's Aatrox bought Doran's Shield. Knowing how annoying Teemo was at level 1, he didn't choose to go straight up to contest the lane. Instead, he carefully stood behind his own melee minions, preparing to use the edge of his Q skill [Darkin Blade] to chip away at the minions.

But Su Mo's Teemo doesn't even have the words "peaceful development" in his dictionary!
Teemo crossed the minion wave, even with the aggro of three melee minions, and walked straight into Aatrox's face!
"Bah!"

A poison dart, imbued with deadly venom, landed precisely on the Sword Demon with a basic attack!
369's eyes hardened: "You dare push me against the minion wave? Let's fight!"

He swung his greatsword and unleashed a powerful Q [Darkin Blade] attack on Teemo!
But within a fraction of a second of the Aatrox's attack, Su Mo's finger lightly slid across the mouse, and Teemo's small body moved at an extremely strange right angle, just outside the edge of the Q's knock-up!
"Missed it?! Mozi's positioning was too extreme!" Miller exclaimed. (End of Chapter)