You've only been playing for half a year, and you've already reached the finals?

Chapter 143 Covered in Honors!

The two sides then played several more games.

Although Mingjing's hero pool for the mid lane is relatively narrow, he plays a lot of heroes for the bottom lane. Later, he also got a Tristana and even a Bomb.

Without exception, every single one of them performed quite well.

All I can say is that Mingjing's skill level is what it is now, so he won't do too badly no matter what he plays. Moreover, playing his favorite hero in the mid lane is not really outside his comfort zone. At least in the laning phase, there's nothing wrong with him.

Even after moving to the solo lane, his laning dominance is even greater than before!

Perhaps the only problem is that, as a mid-laner, Mingjing's tempo and roaming ability are still somewhat lacking.

He prefers to dominate the lane and then radiate to his teammates, a pure bot lane playstyle, with relatively weak coordination with his teammates in the early game.

But it's not a big problem. Mingjing has gradually found his footing, and he should be able to improve in this area soon.

In the fourth game, with JieJie and Viper's coordinated use of Smite, EDG secured the Baron and dominated the team fight.

TES typed GG again.

Mingjing stood up and stretched his back, preparing for the next training match, when he heard Abu's voice coming through his earpiece.

"Well, Top Esports said they're not playing anymore. Let's call it a day then."

Ming Jing let out a soft breath, feeling happy at that moment.

Ming Jing wasn't surprised by his performance in the mid lane, as it was exactly what he expected.

In lane, it's all about last-hitting, positioning, and using skills. What difference does it make between the three lanes?

What truly made him happy was that his teammates this time were indeed much better.

Logically speaking, Top Esports should be considered an absolutely strong team. Even when they were with JD Gaming, their win rate was at most 80%.

But today, they easily won all four games!

Besides the fact that TES could gain an advantage in the mid lane every game, there was another important reason: TES didn't gain an advantage in the bottom half of the map either!

Mingjing didn't actually know who Viper was in the bottom lane, but while he was laning in the mid lane, he switched screens to check the bottom lane and quickly got a satisfactory answer.

Even from his perspective, Viper's performance was flawless, on par with any AD carry in this year's World Championship, and he held his own against TES's bot lane.

TES's strength lies entirely in their two carries, and now that both carries are underperforming, their defeat is to be expected.

In addition, Flandre performed quite well in the top lane, going toe-to-toe with 369 while also frequently providing clever assistance to the jungle and mid lane.

Ming Jing doesn't ask the team for much help; he only hopes that his teammates won't support him or hold him back—that's enough for him.

This is the strong mentality that comes from playing AD for half a year.
For Ming Jing, his current teammates are all pleasant surprises!
Behind him, Abu looked at the result of the match and nodded in satisfaction.

Using Top Esports as a benchmark, it's easy to see that the current EDG team is incredibly strong, even stronger than imagined!

The players seemed to have no need for practice; they immediately displayed a powerful performance.

Moreover, Mingjing's performance in the mid-lane was particularly remarkable.

Although the mid-jungle synergy is a bit low and we rarely see mid-jungle synergy, the mid lane laning phase is really fierce!
As long as the mid lane can maintain a stable lane advantage, the situation cannot be unfavorable!

Abu was completely relieved and continued in the voice message: "If there are no problems, then get ready to sign the contract. I will send you the specific time and details later."

After saying that, Abu glanced at Scout one last time, and seeing the other's blank expression, he returned to his office with satisfaction.

After sitting down in his office, Abu didn't rush to do anything; instead, he silently counted down the time in his mind.

As someone who has no connection to the esports industry yet has managed to reach such a high level, Abu is incredibly shrewd. He knows that Scout will be arriving soon.

Sure enough, within twenty seconds of silently counting, there was a knock on the office door.

Abu had just said "Come in" when Scout eagerly pushed the door open and walked in.

"What's wrong?" Abu chuckled. "Is something the matter?"

"Brother," Li Ruican said seriously at the table, "what were you thinking? Why did you let Mingjing try out for the mid lane?"

"What's wrong?" Abu asked calmly, "You don't want to sign, so the club isn't allowed to find someone else?"

Abramovich still remembers how Scout came to him yesterday with an offer from another club, and because that team offered an extra million, he wanted his team to match that offer.

It was this action that completely chilled Abu's heart.

Abu believes that EDG treated Scout well, offering him an extremely high-salary contract, which is among the top five in the entire LPL.

Don't forget, Scout hasn't achieved much in recent years. His only achievement was winning the Summer Split championship as a starter in 17, and then it went downhill year after year.

In 18, they barely made it to the World Championship and reached the quarterfinals. In 19, they reached the semifinals in the playoffs. This year, they didn't even make it to the playoffs!

As the core player of the team after the factory manager's retirement, Scout's performance as a team leader can actually be described as quite poor.

With such a record, EDG's willingness to offer him a top salary and regard him as a key piece in their championship run next year already demonstrates considerable trust.

Don't you even know what level that team that made the offer is at? A team whose potential is obvious and has no hope of winning the championship, they are good for nothing except having money. How can they be compared to EDG next year?

And yet you still want to pull the team away?
Seeing Scout rushing over so urgently, Abu understood that Scout never intended to leave EDG; he simply wanted to gain more for himself.

It might not even be Scout's own idea; it could be the opinion of his agency. Scout's agency is very famous in the industry and every year they remotely control their players to influence clubs in order to gain more benefits.

The agency behind them saw that EDG was aiming for the championship and couldn't find a better mid laner than Scout during this transfer period, so they were fearless.

But who could have imagined that Mingjing would come up with such a crazy idea and choose to switch to the mid-lane?
But as the saying goes, loyalty without absolute loyalty is absolutely disloyal. Scout has the ability to make his own decisions, but he chose to listen to the club's opinion.

Since Scout only sees EDG as a partner, EDG doesn't mind treating Scout the same way.

Seeing that Scout wanted to say something more, Abu simply waved his hand and laughed, "There's no point in talking about this now. We've already found a better mid laner. So, you either sign this contract and rotate with Mingjing, or you can find another team."

As Abu spoke, a contract was already placed in front of Scout.

Scout picked up the contract in front of him and paused for a moment.

Compared to the two-year, 20 million contract Abramovich offered last time, this time it has become 7 million per year, not only halving the length of the contract but also offering a 30% discount.

In fact, this contract was the one EDG originally intended to give Scout. It was a figure derived by the actuarial team hired by the club, taking into account Scout's almost zero honors in the past three years and his personal popularity.

Actuaries believe that Scout needs to reach this figure to generate profit for the club.

However, the club at the time believed that there was no need to be overly concerned about the players they had nurtured, so they offered them a higher contract.

I never expected to be met with such indifference.

However, it must be said that EDG does need a mid-laner for rotation.

After all, Ming Jing can only play in April, and he will miss the regular season and the first half of the playoffs in the Spring Split. If the team is eliminated before Ming Jing returns, that would be a big problem.

Therefore, it would be best to find a mid-laner who can hold his own to help the team survive until Mingjing returns.

If that's the only purpose, the seven-million-dollar Scout is a pretty cost-effective option.

“You can take this contract back and think about it slowly.” Abu’s face remained expressionless as he said softly, “But be mindful of the time, the transfer window is almost over.”

Scout stared at the contract in front of him for a long time, pursed his thin lips, and finally took the contract and walked out of the office.

Watching Scout's departing figure, Abu leisurely lay back in his chair, completely unperturbed.

The situation has now reversed.

Scout used to think that EDG couldn't find a good mid laner, so he was fearless.

However, now that Scout has become a viable alternative, the advantage has shifted to EDG.

Because Abu knows that in both the Chinese and Korean regions, strong teams don't lack mid laners.

TES's Knight, JDG's toothpaste, DWG's Showmaker, and DRX's Chovy.

All the strong teams with championship potential have mid-laners whose contracts are still valid.

Scout only has two paths before him: either go to a weak team, sign a big contract, and tank, with no future in his professional career but only money.

Alternatively, they can obediently accept EDG's low-salary contract and try to compete with Mingjing for the job.

As long as Scout still craves glory, he will definitely come back.

Two days later, Abu personally landed in Wuhan and delivered a contract to Mingjing's home.

A one-year add-on contract worth 2200 million, the same as JDG's previous contract price.

Because Mingjing still has a rookie contract with EDG, this contract is an additional contract on top of the original rookie contract. With the original 50 RMB in the contract, Mingjing's rookie contract will reach a terrifying figure of 2250 million RMB.

This rookie contract is quite extravagant, even in the NBA.

Abramovich explained, "The club is not only buying your ability, but also your potential and future. We hope you can live up to the club's expectations."

Thanks to the fact that several players on the team had not performed well last year, Flandre's LNG team, like EDG, did not even make the playoffs, and Viper even helped GRF get relegated to the secondary league. Moreover, most of them chose to sign with EDG because of Mingjing, and they were all aiming for the championship, so the price was not high.

In addition, the league has not yet introduced a luxury tax this year, so EDG can still afford it.

Even so, the combined salaries of EDG's starting five players are absolutely the highest in history, even higher than T1, which has the highest-paid player in history, and other teams can only look on with envy.

This is a team aiming for the championship; failing to win can be considered a failure!
"rest assured"

Ming Jing sensed the pressure emanating from Abu's words, but he remained unfazed, instead chuckling lightly:
"Just wait until you're rolling in championships."

He still won the championship despite having such a disadvantageous lineup this year.

Now that his teammates' overall strength has improved significantly, Ming Jing can't think of any reason not to win the championship.

After confirming that the contract was correct, Mingjing and his father, who was standing next to him as his guardian, quickly signed their names.

Looking at the contract in his hand, Abu couldn't help but start making connections.

When the news of Mingjing switching to the mid lane is officially announced, it should surprise everyone, right?

Of course, his task during the transfer window is not completely over yet.

He now needs to find someone to replace Mingjing.

Abu is waiting for a phone call.

"Drip-drip-"

Just then, the phone rang again.

Abu looked at the contacts on his phone and smiled. He exchanged a glance with Mingjing, pointed to the phone, and then walked out of Mingjing's house.

"Hey," Abu said, "What's up?"

Scout's voice came through the phone again: "If I perform better than Mingjing, can I become a starter?"

Aren't you being a little too confident?
Hearing this, Abu sneered inwardly: "Of course, as long as you have the ability."

With Mingjing officially signing with EDG, the battle to recruit him, which lasted for half a month, has officially come to an end.

The clubs couldn't help but lament.

Did he choose to stay with EDG?

The person who must be feeling the most pain is Lan Baiqing, the owner of JD.com.

After all, all their transfer strategies revolve around Ming Jing, and they also offer him the most money.

Coupled with their shared hardships last year, Boss Lan was originally very confident about this.

But to my surprise, after waiting for more than half a month, I only received a WeChat message from Mingjing.

This message was released after signing with EDG. Mingjing specifically thanked JD Gaming for their cultivation and help over the past few months, and said that Lan was a good person, but the two sides were not suitable at this stage, and he hoped that there would be opportunities to cooperate in the future. Looking at the message in front of him, Lan felt a lump in his throat.

What exactly attracts you to EDG?

But to my surprise, after waiting for more than half a month, all I got was a "good person card" from Ming Jing.

EDG has shown you kindness and support, but hasn't JD.com done the same for you?

EDG, a team that didn't even make the playoffs this year and didn't undergo a major roster overhaul during the transfer period, can they really compare to JDG, who have reached the finals twice? Aren't they afraid of wasting their precious prime years?
But since things had come to this, Lan Baiqing had no other choice.

After all, Ming Jing was the hero who helped them win the championship, and this time the two sides parted on good terms.

He can only resort to backup plans to retain this year's champion as much as possible.

The other clubs are in a similar situation.

Ming Jing acted as a stabilizing force, holding the transfer window still for half a month. Now that the stabilizing force has caught fire, the undercurrents beneath the surface have finally begun to surge, and various pieces of information are gradually surfacing.

SN's support player, SwordArt, has left the team, and Luo Wenjun, a trainee from EDG, has been acquired as the starting player.

TES's support player, Yuyanjia, left the team, and LGD acquired support player Mark.

JDG's original starting five players are confirmed to stay with the team, but Phi's whereabouts are still unknown.

With the transfer window finally starting to open up, countless viewers are discussing it.

[After not hearing any news for half a month, I thought the LPL was going to shut down. Turns out it's still operating?]

[Damn it, didn't Xiaofei's exams finish? What is JD.com doing? Hurry up and sign Xiaofei!]

[Xiaofei is already an EDG player, why would he sign with them?]

[You don't actually think a $50 rookie contract can stop Xiaofei from transferring, do you? Aren't clubs scrambling to pay the buyout clause?]

Could it be that they're being held up by the State Grid?

[What a load of crap! If they wanted to block someone, would they send Xiaofei to JD Gaming to compete in the World Championship? Guodian probably just wants to keep him here.]

【No way, does Guodian even deserve it? They didn't even make the playoffs last year. Don't waste Xiaofei's talent!】

[Don't worry, Hanyi said EDG is going to spend a lot of money this year.]

Do you believe Hanyi, or do you believe I am Qin Shi Huang?

Because EDG's performance last year was so poor, countless viewers thought the club was completely ruined. Now, seeing that EDG is not making any moves and is refusing to release its players, the viewers' anxiety is practically overflowing.

Abu was actually quite helpless about this.

In fact, he submitted the contract to Tengjing immediately after signing it.

However, Tencent Games is holding back, keeping the approval process stalled and unable to make an official announcement in advance.

This, in turn, gave various whistleblower bloggers room to maneuver.

They took this opportunity to spread various rumors and generate buzz.

Another blogger, Laozi Hen Kuang, said that a well-known player will switch positions this year.

This news has sparked a lot of speculation, with some guessing that Xiaofei will switch to the top lane and play Maokai in EDG's top lane.

But soon, some funny memes appeared, with someone photoshopping a Los Angeles Lakers jersey onto Ming Jing, implying that Ming Jing was about to join the Lakers as a point guard and form a Big Three with James and Davis.

Some people say Ming Jing plans to transfer to Barcelona to play as a striker, forming a formidable duo with Messi to compete for the Champions League title.

Of course, Han Yi quickly added to the revelation, and everyone eventually learned that Xiao Hu had transferred to the top lane, and the pranks surrounding Ming Jing came to a temporary end.

But all of this has nothing to do with Mingjing.

After signing the contract, Ming Jing packed his bags and then rushed to Shanghai to attend the upcoming LPL Annual Awards Ceremony and All-Star Game.

Before we knew it, it was December 17th.

On the last day of the transfer window, the LPL Annual Awards Ceremony was grandly launched.

Ming Jing followed the club directly to Chengdu and arrived at the Wuliangye Financial City Performing Arts Center.

At the official request, Ming Jing walked the red carpet alone and signed his name on the billboard.

This action alone sparked a flurry of discussion in the live chat.

[Holy crap, let's fly!]

The missing person has returned!

[Wow, he disappeared for over a month after winning the championship. So, what happened to Xiaofei?]

What kind of bullshit are you spouting?

Why did Xiaofei enter alone? Where are his teammates?

You still don't understand Tencent's shady dealings? They just want to keep Xiaofei on the transfer window until the very last day!

That's disgusting!

Ming Jing quickly entered the venue and sat down in a front-row seat.

However, somewhat awkwardly, the people sitting on either side of him were not his new teammates from EDG, but rather his old teammates from JDG.
As the champion team this year, JDG members were the main focus of this awards ceremony, and Mingjing was one of them.

Seeing the malicious looks in his teammates' eyes, Ming Jing dug his toes into the ground.
"What do you mean, Mingjing?" Toothpaste said irritably, "Didn't you say you'd come back? How come you just left for EDG without saying a word?"

Ming Jing chuckled and feigned ignorance: "I've always been a member of EDG."

"Sigh, what a pity." Green Hair was alright. He smiled and hooked his arm around Ming Jing's shoulder. "I was planning to help you win for another year, but you ran away. So I can only torture you along with you."

This amused Ming Jing, who shrugged his shoulder and shook off the green-haired man's hand: "Don't you know what you're doing?"

Watching the JDG championship five-man team joking and playing around, viewers watching the live stream couldn't help but make their own connections.

Did Xiaofei stay at JD.com?

After a simple opening ceremony, Yu Shuang, the host of the awards ceremony, stepped onto the stage. Accompanied by a video playing on the large screen behind her, she led the audience to reminisce about the highlights of 2020.

With the backstory of IG and FPX's two championships, the LPL region is launching an attack on its third title in order to retain its status as the number one region.

Among them, TES and JDG stood out.

The two teams not only secured the finals spots in the spring and summer seasons, but one team also won the MSC and the other won the final S championship, making the LPL a great success for the whole year!
It has to be said that 2020 was a legendary year, second only to 2018.

The awards ceremony began soon after, starting with the Best Newcomer Award, as is tradition.

Unfortunately, Ming Jing did not win the Best Newcomer Award.
The award rules are simple: any player who makes their first appearance in the LPL this year is eligible to receive the award.

Mingjing has never appeared in the LPL, and he is not included in the World Championship.

Therefore, the Rookie Award was ultimately awarded to Bin.

The barrage of comments exploded.

【humor】

[Isn't Ah Bin embarrassed to receive this award?]

There's nothing we can do about it; blame Tencent's abstract rules.

[Haha, Tencent Games is really funny, they didn't even bother to make a last-minute change.]

Bin clearly knew he had gotten the award by a stroke of luck, so he was quite humble when accepting it, saying directly:
"To be honest, this Rookie of the Year award shouldn't have anything to do with me. It should belong to Phi, and I feel unworthy of it. But I believe that I will be worthy of this award in the future."

The episode with the highest emotional intelligence.

Bin has a great deal of respect for those he approves of, and Ming Jing is one of them.

This sincere speech drew applause from the other guests in the audience.

After the Rookie Award was presented, the Best Youth Coach Award was quickly awarded next.

Coincidentally, this award is also related to Ming Jing.

The award winner is EDG's second team coach, Mni, who is an old acquaintance of Mingjing, since Coach Mni gave him a lot of help when he was in the youth training camp.

Coach Mni was equally forthcoming; after going on stage, he thanked Ming Jing in return.

The camera then focused on Ming Jing. The boy gave a thumbs-up to the camera, expressing his gratitude.

Next, the Best Coaching Staff Award and the Best Foreign Player Award were presented to Redmi and Kanavi, two members of JD.com, respectively.

When the two went on stage, they both made a special trip to hug Mingjing to express their gratitude, and they also specifically mentioned Mingjing in their acceptance speeches.

This scene amused the audience.

Although he didn't go on stage, his legend was everywhere on stage.

Next, a large number of awards were presented, including the All-Star Team of the Year.

The best top laner of the year went to Zoom, the best jungler to Kanavi, the best mid laner to Knight, the best AD carry to JackeyLove, and the best support to Greenmao, with the awards completely split between the two teams.

Viewers watching the awards ceremony were stunned to see that Ming Jing wasn't even in the All-Star lineup.

No way, the FMVP won't end up empty-handed, will it? That would be a real joke!

At this moment, the camera inexplicably focused on Ming Jing, who seemed unhurried and simply clapped.

Ming Jing had actually anticipated this, since the nominations for the awards had been announced long ago. He hadn't even been nominated for these previous awards, so winning them was out of the question.

However, it's not like we'll leave empty-handed.

He has two major awards waiting for him.

"Next up is the Most Popular Contestant of the Year Award!"

The most popular player of the year is chosen by viewers through a vote, encompassing all players registered in the LPL, and Mingjing is among them this year.

And it's clear that when it comes to traffic, no one can beat Mingjing right now.

"Phi is the winner of Player of the Year! Congratulations!"

Thunderous applause erupted from the audience.

In the live stream, exclamation marks filled the entire screen, with viewers exclaiming that Tencent had finally done something decent.

Ming Jing and his several champion teammates took turns punching each other before stepping onto the stage to accept the honor.

At this point, the awards ceremony came to an end, and the final, most important awards were presented!
"Next up is the last award of the year!" Yu Shuang paused briefly, then smiled and said, "The MVP Award! Let's take a look at the nominations!"

The screen then begins playing a pre-made short film, which starts with Jinx bathing in dragon blood and unleashing a barrage of attacks in a team fight!

At this moment, the narration began to play.

"His laning phase is like precise etiquette, his team fights are like cold-blooded pursuit. With talent as his blade and diligence as his shield, he reshapes the rules of the Rift with meticulous deduction and breaks through the fog of war with his ultimate reaction."

"He proved his exceptional talent in just one month, and with his perfect performance, he continued the peak of the LPL!"

Subsequent nominees include Kanavi, JackeyLove, Knight, and SofM.

But at this moment, the other four were no longer paying attention; the screen was filled with comments like "Fly!"

Because everyone knew that once Phi's ID appeared, everyone else was destined to be just there to make up the numbers.

"The winner of the 2020 LPL MVP is Phi! Congratulations!" Yu Shuang smiled.

(End of this chapter)