League of Legends: Reborn in Season 3, Tuning the Entire League

Chapter 119 One Shot, Four PDDs!

Dream Team, Intra-team Solo Competition!
Inside Summoner's Rift.

At this moment, on the top lane of the left half of the map, two heroes are looking at each other from a distance.

The blue team on the left is CNLPL-PDD (Desert Butcher - Renekton)!

The purple team on the right is CNLPL-JM (Weapon Master - Jax)!

After deciding to use 1V1 solo matches to strengthen the team members' position in the ecosystem, Jiang Ming did not delay and immediately put it into action.

After all, just like he said when he criticized WeiXiao, the past is always the past, and external things cannot be relied upon by an athlete, and the same goes for him.

Being ranked number one in the Chinese server, being the owner of the NXG club, or any other extra advantages are not as stable as the status gained by directly defeating teammates in the same position in a solo match.

In the Chinese server, even if two people have just exchanged insults in ranked games, the simplest solution is to play a solo "father-son" game.

The victor can ruthlessly humiliate the weak.

One of the head coach's tasks was to arrange solo matches, and the All-Star team members immediately became interested.

PDD is even more eager to get started.

"Hehe, I can't beat Lao Jiang when it comes to game understanding, but when it comes to solo play, I won't back down."

So this is the scene before our eyes.

PDD and Jiang Ming each sat in front of their computers in the training room, set the room password, selected their heroes, and began a best-of-three match.

Victory rules: First blood, first tower, 100 CS!

The remaining three team members and Abu set up extra computers on the sidelines to watch the game via OB.

"Old Jiang, don't say I, Old Park, took advantage of you. You let me win the first game, and we soloed on the top lane. The next game should be your mid lane." PDD, who was quite martial, typed in the chat channel.

In his view, if a player who mainly plays mid lane comes to the top lane and picks a top lane champion to solo against him, isn't that just giving away a free win?

"Yeah, Lao Jiang is an honest man. In the second game, he let the opponent have a good start by going back to the mid lane."

"If the head coach is defeated 2-0 by himself, it will definitely affect his prestige!"

PDD was planning this as he walked towards the top lane, controlling the crocodile, buying a longsword and a red potion.

However, just as PDD was pondering the intricacies of human relationships, he saw the Jax, carrying a Doran's Blade, appear behind the Crocodile and begin attacking ranged minions to stack his passive.

"Oh, were you just in the grass?"

"You old schemer!!!"

When it came to areas where he lacked knowledge, PDD clearly didn't understand the rationale behind having a level 1 weapon blocking his back, but based on the skill level of a top-tier player, he quickly farmed minions to build up his rage.

After killing a ranged minion, Jiang Ming made sure he could reach level 2 first. Then, wanting to test whether the opponent had leveled up W or E, Jiang Ming went straight to the crocodile to prevent PDD from stacking rage.

"Damn it, Lao Jiang, you have no sportsmanship. Even in a solo match, you're playing with minion waves against me?"

PDD started his trash-talking mode, which was reminiscent of the banter they used to exchange at offline tournaments.

PDD also knew that a level 1 crocodile without rage was useless. Suddenly realizing that the opponent was trying to rush level 2 and fight him by flanking and attacking minions, he quickly learned E and pressed the keyboard twice to create distance.

"Very decisive!"

Once in player mode, Jiang Ming stopped putting on any coaching airs and started interacting offline with PDD.

Because he had considered the possibility that the crocodile might level up its E skill at level 1, Jiang Ming's Jax did not use E to force a fight. It is not easy for the crocodile to stun after using both E skills to create distance. On the contrary, if the E skill hits a minion, it will speed up the wave push, which is not good. After all, in the top lane, Jax usually seeks to push the wave slowly if he wants to take the initiative.

He may not be a top laner now, but that doesn't mean he didn't play top lane in ranked games in his past life.

By Season 15, the understanding of minion waves in each lane and the matchups between different heroes had been thoroughly studied by both professional players and casual players.

When dealing with the enemy crocodile, keep pushing the minion wave slowly. Then, all subsequent actions, including trading blows, should be geared towards managing the minion wave. This way, you can remain invincible.

Soon, with the death of the soldier, Jiang Ming reached level two before PDD.

PDD, who had finally built up half of his rage, controlled the crocodile and stepped forward to forcefully use his double E to scrape the minion wave.

"Let's fight!"

With his superior level, Jiang Ming certainly wouldn't let the AEA fan spin in place, forcibly forcing PDD's double E out once again.

[Leaping Slash!]

Instead of learning W, the level 1 crocodile created space and used QA to poke again.

Facing the aggro of the three ranged minions from the blue team behind him, Jiang Ming didn't try to overextend; he attacked them and then retreated.

"Hiss... Old Park's laning phase seems off." Mingkai is very clear about PDD's strength. In previous matches, Strawberry has been under pressure nine out of ten times when facing this guy.

However, the situation has now reversed.

Even if a level 1 crocodile is weak without rage, it shouldn't be allowed to be spun around like a spinning top by a mid-lane player using a late-game Jax.

Standing in the crowd, White Crescent took on the task of commentary, selecting some information that the boss could clearly explain to everyone: "When Jax is laning against Renekton, the point where you can pressure Renekton is at level one, so the laning phase design is very important. Jax's side absolutely cannot let Renekton enter level two or three without taking damage. Once that happens, Jax will absolutely not be able to beat a Renekton with a red-rage state."

"I see. That's why JM camped in the bushes at level 1, using ranged minions to stack his passive and force the crocodile to learn E to rush level 2."

"understood."

The white crescent moon gesture ends there; what follows involves a deeper consideration of why the Weapon Master prioritizes level two by attacking a ranged minion rather than a melee minion.

Despite being utterly shocked from his spectator's perspective, Abu kept meticulously recording the details of the two players' laning phase.

He hasn't forgotten why a championship-winning coach is willing to be an assistant.

WE's weakness isn't just in the mid lane. Strawberry's tendency to give up first blood in the top lane is giving the team a real headache. After all, the hype about the "first blood curse" is just for fun. With a 400 gold disadvantage at the start of the game, anyone who takes it seriously is a fool.

Currently, both PDD and JM are among the top solo laners in the Chinese server, so they certainly can't miss out on any game insights that can be copied.

The result of the first solo match was clearly beyond everyone's expectations.

No one expected that JM would run to the top lane and even use a top lane champion and still beat PDD.

All they saw was that after Jiang Ming's weapon master gained a third of his health at level one, he kept repeating the same thing—pushing the lane, harassing, pushing the lane again, letting the minions push into the tower, and then going back to base to buy equipment.

PDD is either being worn down or on his way to being worn down, and he's always fighting against higher-level players with upgraded equipment and weapons against his unequipped crocodiles.

In the end, he didn't even reach level six; during a psychological battle at level four, PDD was greedy for a cannon minion, and as a result, Jiang Ming used his AW combo first. Then, his E attack failed to hit the weapon, which led to him being stunned by a jump slash and losing half of his health.

Going home means losing lane, not going home means getting tower-dived.

"Is Old Park really not leaving?"

Jiang Ming, channeling his inner Roaring Celestial, chuckled at PDD on his left, "I'm tower diving, lol."

The weapon led a large wave of minions into the tower. PDD knew that if he lost this wave of experience, the level 6 weapon would be able to defeat his level 4 crocodile. He thought he might as well hide under the tower and try to make a play.

Unfortunately, Jiang Ming, who prefers to plan carefully before acting, had already calculated the damage he would cause.

A started with Ignite, without greedily using W, and immediately activated E on the spot. Although the damage from Renekton's W cannot be avoided in the current version, the damage was very low because the opponent was behind in both level and equipment. After being stunned by the electric fan, he finished the opponent off with a QA combo, and then flashed out of the tower.

boom!
First blood!

Beneath the Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon skin, the Weapon Master possesses a touch of Chinese ink painting aesthetics, gracefully departing after beheading his enemy, leaving behind the corpse of a wild beast.

JM vs PDD: 1 to 0!

"Hey, come again!" PDD, whose popularity had soared, exited the page at lightning speed.

Then, a 1v1 custom game invitation came in.

PDD stubbornly insisted, "This time, we're switching to mid lane!"

"..."

Four minutes later, even faster than the previous game ended, the two players switched heroes. Jiang Ming got the Crocodile, while PDD stubbornly chose the Weapon Master.

As a result, he was killed in front of the tower before even reaching level four.

JM vs PDD: 2-0!

"Alright, alright, I give up, I really give up. My god, I get hammered by your weapon when I'm using a crocodile, and I get hammered by your crocodile when I'm using a weapon. It's only because you can't use Shadow Clone Jutsu that it would be so much better if you were the one to fight the All-Star game."

"Old Park, want to play another round?"

"I'm not coming anymore, I'm not coming anymore. You yourself said that the top lane matchup is a test of a player's ability to control minion waves and manage positioning. My understanding of minion waves is completely outclassed by you now. I would lose even if we played a hundred more games." PDD waved his hands repeatedly. He's not a masochist. If he couldn't win a solo match, why would he stubbornly go and get beaten up? That would be just plain stupid.

Jiang Ming continued to invite, "Let's play one more game, and I'll teach you a hero that can crush other regions at the S3 All-Star event."

PDD: "But then again, Coach Jiang is willing to teach me hero skills, so I can't refuse, can I?"

crunch.

The chubby butt landed on the gaming chair once again, and the chair let out a painful groan.

"Old Jiang, teaching is teaching, but can you go a little easier on me?"

"Hmm, no problem."

PDD still felt it wasn't safe enough, so he changed the champion he had already chosen, Kayle, to Zac.

This hero can heal and is incredibly resilient under pressure.

……

"I won't be doing a solo match, my skills are just average. Just tell me your tactical ideas."

After PDD finished his solo match, Mingkai decisively rejected Jiang Ming's suggestion of a "friendly exchange." He knew his own limitations; even a mechanically gifted player like PDD was easily subdued, so there was no need for him to go and cause trouble for himself.

Aside from his skills, JM is even better than him in his understanding of the game, which he's most confident in...

Do not believe?

Just look at that former LPL top laner who was squatting in a corner, questioning his life after Jayce shattered four of Zac's fragments with a single shot.

If Mingkai doesn't fight, Pangran certainly won't either.

In the end, only a smile remained.

"We're not choosing Summoner's Rift. Riot released a new map this year—Howling Abyss. There's only one lane, you can't recall to upgrade your equipment, and the fountain doesn't heal you before you die. How about a solo match here?"

He glanced at PDD, who was still in a daze, without showing any emotion. As the former number one AD, he couldn't accept surrendering without a fight.

"The Howling Abyss?" Jiang Ming had no objection. "Sure."

Upon entering the game room, both players simultaneously activated the blind hero selection mode, but the heroes that appeared in the hero selection bar were locked in.

The eyes of the people watching from behind suddenly turned strange.

There is no other reason.

Blue side: CNLPL-JM (Vayne, the Night Hunter)

Purple Team: CNLPL-weixiao (Night Hunter - Vayne)
"Wow, it's two identical heroes fighting each other?"

PDD was instantly revived, and the frustration of having four of his own units destroyed in a single shot vanished.

He also wanted to see how the battle between the two would end.

"Vayne!"

Jiang Ming stared at the game loading screen with a puzzled expression. He hadn't expected that Smile had thought of the same thing as him, and their summoner skills were exactly the same.
Flash + Barrier!
In contrast to Jiang Ming's relaxed expression, Xiao Wei, sitting on the other side, had a furrowed brow.

While feeling a mix of joy and anger, he also felt a surge of rage.

JM, you pick a top lane champion when you're soloing with a top laner, and now you're picking a marksman champion when you're soloing with yourself. Just how arrogant are you?
puff!

puff!

Two Shadow Archers wearing Bayonetta skins were simultaneously attacking minions with basic attacks.

"Drink!"

Although confident that his basic skills were unmatched, WeiXiao clearly had no intention of winning by getting a hundred last hits. After briefly dealing with the minion wave, he suddenly dodged and launched a surprise attack, landing a powerful basic attack.

puff!
Vayne's health bar dropped slightly by one bar.

Faced with the smiling attack, Jiang Ming smiled calmly, and at the moment he started his basic attack, he dodged and ambushed by pulling the mouse to the right, AQ!

clatter! clatter! clatter!
A rapid series of mouse clicks echoed in the room.

In the game, after the Night Hunter on the left side of the map used the enhanced basic attack from his Q skill, he didn't rush to follow up with another basic attack. Instead, he actively pulled back, and just as the opposing player, Smile, turned around to avoid minion damage, Jiang Ming's second basic attack landed.

"No, what's going on?!"

"Ah, Smiling went first, but ended up getting hit by an extra attack?"

PDD, Mingkai, and Abu were dumbfounded.

No, that's not right, is it?
Two heroes with completely identical skills and attack ranges, how did JM manage to land that extra basic attack?

In contrast to the surprised expressions of PDD and the other two, White Crescent and Pang Ran remained calm.

It's nothing new. They've seen Vayne use her to kite Caitlyn, and their basic tactics are all the same.

The solo performance continues.

The second time, it was still WeiXiao who initiated first. Realizing that he couldn't start with Q, WeiXiao chose to close the distance and use AQA to wear down Jiang Ming. Jiang Ming was naturally not to be outdone and retaliated with AQA as well.

What was initially thought to be an equal exchange turned into a shock when the difference in health bars caused Xiaoxiao's expression to change drastically, her face filled with astonishment.

"The bushes!!!"

This talented player, confident in being the best bot laner in the LPL, uttered a single word with great emphasis.

It turns out that during the back-and-forth exchange of AQA, Jiang Ming, on the defensive side, used his Q ability to move into the bushes, successfully avoiding some of the minion damage. In comparison, WeiXiao was hit by ranged minions, so the difference in their abilities became apparent.

"Old Jiang really has mastered the art of understanding minion waves to the extreme," PDD said sincerely.

I've never seen anyone play the game like this. Not only do they maintain the distance of normal attacks, but they also take the aggro of minions into account.

"Half health against two-thirds... Smile lost!" Abu shook his head inwardly.

"At least hold out until level six. It's quite difficult for ADCs to get a solo kill in a duel!"

Disaster?
As soon as Mingkai finished speaking, Jiang Ming, who had been on the defensive, made a move after killing a minion.

Swish!
A white light gathered above the hero's head, raising the hero's level from 1 to 2.
While pressing Ctrl+E to learn the skill, the Night Hunter took the giant crossbow bolt from his back and unleashed [Demon Judgment].

Puff!

"You want to prevent me from eating minions and losing experience?"

His smile froze as he saw Vayne's movements, but before he could react further, Vayne, who had fired the crossbow bolt, vanished from her spot.

boom!
flash!

The hero who was originally standing at the end of the minion wave suddenly moved to the flank, and the purple Vayne, who was hit by the huge crossbow bolt, was slammed heavily into the wall of Howling Abyss.

Vayne's E-Flash!
As easily as eating and drinking, Jiang Ming didn't even lift his eyelids as he executed the actions that caused the crowd behind him to scream in surprise. He continued to use basic attacks while Vayne was stunned.

The 1.5-second stun duration was enough for Jiang Mingduo to land two auto-attacks. Smile, who started with Doran's Blade, already had two-thirds of his health depleted at level one. Even if he leveled up to level two, that little bit of health was simply not enough to withstand the two-stage damage from his E skill.

"I lost!"

Smile and give up using the barrier to absorb damage, then use Flash to create distance after being stunned.

With such a huge difference in health, even if he survives this wave, he won't be able to continue laning; it's just a matter of a slow death.

(CNLPL-Jm has quit the game!)
Having secured the first blood, Jiang Ming didn't say much. He moved his gaming chair away from the computer, looked at the other player, and smiled, saying, "Two more games to go!"

"No, there's no need to continue. I lost the solo match." Smiling, she stared at the incredibly confident young man before her and voiced her question: "That was Vayne's E-Flash just now, right?"

"Yes, but it's not hard to learn. Just press Flash in the direction you want the moment you cast E. It's very useful in bot lane skirmishes."

"Vayne's E-Flash!"

Mingkai muttered to himself behind him. He remembered that Lee Sin's ultimate was also a forced displacement skill. Could it be that Lee Sin also had R-flash or similar techniques?
"Clap clap!" Jiang Ming clapped his hands. "Then let's begin the next phase of training."

Without wasting any more time, now that their absolute status as the LPL dream team has been reaffirmed through the solo match, the next step is to enter the intense training phase for their three teammates.

……

All-Star training camp day 2!

At 10:30 a.m., under the guidance of professional coaches invited by the LPL organizers, the Dream Team, from players to coaches, began their daily physical training.

Tencent Sports has been involved in health management for many years, so the professionalism of the people they hire is beyond question.

During his workout, Jiang Ming also took the time to exchange ideas with the other party about the e-sports club's experience in protecting the health of its players, which made Abu's eyelids twitch wildly.

Fifteen minutes later, the morning exercise ended.

After finishing their workout and eating, the group quickly entered the training room. While their stomachs were digesting, they practiced basic last-hitting with specific heroes without any gear, under the guidance of White Crescent.

It's no wonder everyone is so eager, since even before the competition started, many mainstream media outlets had already been promoting the news about the Shanghai All-Star Game.

Furthermore, news has come from above that even a certain TV-5 channel is carefully considering whether to choose an appropriate time to broadcast the All-Star game live.

It concerns the legitimacy of esports, so how could they not take it seriously?

The fundamentals aren't what everyone thinks. It's not about how well you practice, or how you can get a hundred hits within a time limit to be considered a success, or it's about sticking to the same thing and practicing with a naked character like Doom or Anivia.

Jiang Ming then updated the requirements for the NXG team members. There were basically five groups every day. Two of them were required to last hit more than 100 times in ten minutes with no equipment. The remaining three groups were required to last hit with full equipment, one group to keep up with the timeline and keep up with the equipment, and the last group to last hit with the help of teammates, which was called pressure interference last hit.

The reasoning is simple: each situation needs to be analyzed individually. In a match, players don't need to last-hit minions with no gear. While having no gear can improve a player's basic skills to some extent, in a real match, a certain amount of extended training is still required.

In addition, the requirements for different groups are different, and the specific basic skills practice for players in different positions are also different. For example, junglers practice farming jungle camps, while supports practice farming with the AD carry.

Abu couldn't help but exclaim, "No wonder the fundamentals of every player in NXG are so formidable."

After the LPL reached the third round, WE stopped praising Smile's last hits, and the fans wisely stopped hyping him up.

Because they were surprised to find that JM's requirements for his NXG players were that every position where they needed to last-hit was at a level comparable to, or even better than, WeiXiao's.

If you keep bragging about how many minions there are for another ten minutes, or showing off how well you last-hit minions, random viewers will just feel awkward.

Jiang Ming remained noncommittal. He didn't mind sharing this most basic training with LPL clubs. In fact, after the LPL league fulfilled its promise ahead of schedule and provided more support in terms of team exposure on the team client, he took the initiative to share it with all LPL clubs.

roll!
Roll it up as hard as you can, until it's completely rotten.

In the past, LPL relied entirely on reckless, passionate play. Now, I'm sharing the secrets to improving your skills. If everyone else is practicing them and you're not, then you'll be eliminated from the league.

Of course, just like publicly revealing the secret manual of the Sunflower Manual, once everyone has practiced it, the actual changes in strength and ecosystem within the region won't be significant. At most, NXG's dominance will no longer be as exaggerated.

Jiang Ming stated that there wouldn't be many changes within the competition zone, but it would be a different story for those outside the zone.

He refused to believe that LPL, which he had pushed open the book to, could still act like it did in its previous life after tasting the sweetness of crushing foreign champions, receiving sponsorships left and right, having various capitals enter the market early, and even gaining social attention as the industry got on the right track.

(End of this chapter)