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

Chapter 154 Welcome Back to the Era of EDG Domination

On April 12, two days before the finals, the EDG team boarded a plane and landed at Wuhan Tianhe Airport.

After landing, everyone headed straight to the competition venue—Optics Valley International Tennis Center—to participate in the filming of the finals promotional video.

This final will be held in Wuhan, the city on the Yangtze River.

Similar to the previous S10 finals, this will be an offline event under strict control, with 7,000 spectators in the venue.

The holding of this final is of extraordinary significance.

This is because it marks the one-year anniversary of the lifting of the lockdown.

After experiencing the enormous "growing pains" of 2020, this city is bursting with vitality in the post-pandemic era.

Against this backdrop, such a large-scale offline esports event can effectively showcase the resilience and vitality of this city.

The promotional video for this final is also being filmed in this direction.

For Ming Jing, a local resident, this match also held special significance.

After filming the documentary, taking advantage of the fact that there was no training match that day, Ming Jing made a special trip home to deliver the tickets to his parents and Wang Hao.

My home is very close to the venue, only a ten-minute drive away.

This is a competition held on home soil, and Ming Jing certainly doesn't want to lose in the end.

After delivering the tickets to his family and friends, Ming Jing returned to the hotel to hold a pre-match meeting with his teammates before the finals.

"Our opponent in the finals is RNG," Maokai said. "We should be quite familiar with this opponent, since we just faced each other in the winners' bracket finals."

Maokai's words were actually quite mild.

The relationship between EDG and RNG is more than just a recent encounter.

For the EDG team, RNG is a formidable opponent.

After all, RNG won both of their matches against each other in the Spring Split.

This actually puts a kind of inherent pressure on the EDG team.

"RNG's system is perfect in a sense," Maokai said. "In the early game, they rely on the synergy between the top and jungle to hold the line. In the mid-game, Xiaohu supports his teammates by split pushing dangerous lanes, creating a comfortable development environment for GALA and forming an extremely virtuous cycle. You should all understand this very well."

Upon hearing this, Saint Gun couldn't help but nod repeatedly.

Playing against RNG, the top laner suffers the most.

Wei is really taking action!
Whenever you switch the camera to the top lane, you'll definitely see Wei nearby.

You can even often see Ming, the support player.

Not only will you get ganked relentlessly in the early game, but Xiaohu usually picks split-pushing champions like Gnar and Lucian. Once they get their items, you can't stop them from split-pushing, and you'll get whipped around in the mid-game!
When you have to deal with Xiaohu's split push, GALA in the bottom lane will take the opportunity to farm like crazy and quickly make up for the economic losses in the early game.

In the later stages, GALA's consistent team fight performance made them capable of defeating any opponent.

In their previous encounters, EDG had tried both a strategy of focusing on the bottom lane to exchange resources and a strategy of focusing on the top lane to fight head-on, but both ended in defeat.

In terms of individual player ability, even when Scout was the starting player, EDG believed they were better than their opponents, but in terms of tactical system, EDG was far behind.

This EDG team is far from perfect and still has a long way to go.

If we had to point out something, RNG's only weakness right now is that the team has only been around for a short time and only has this one playstyle, making it easy to counter.

Maokai looked at the players whispering to each other and said, "The most important question right now is whether or not to ban Lucian."

In the upper bracket match between the two teams, EDG opted to ban Lucian five times.

In a previous match between FPX and RNG, Xiaohu's Lucian delivered a perfect performance, helping his team win the decisive game.

Lucian isn't particularly strong as an AD carry in the bot lane, but he's ridiculously strong as a mid or top laner against mages and short-range top laners.

EDG has a hard time finding them, so they can only ban them.

But now, things seem to have taken a turn for the better.

“No need to ban it,” Ming Jing said. “I can take it.”

Maokai thought for a moment and said, "What if we play as the red side? The other side will pick first."

"It's up to you guys," Ming Jing said. "If there aren't enough ban slots, we don't have to ban anything. As long as we can hold on in the early game and not collapse, I can go and carry Lucian in the mid-game."

Upon hearing Mingjing's remarks, Maokai felt a significant reduction in BP's pressure and nodded in satisfaction.

A star player can bring about changes to a team in many ways.

Just like Xiaohu's rotation revitalized the entire RNG team.

Ming Jing's arrival will surely change the outcome of the battle between the two sides!
Meanwhile, on another floor of the hotel, the RNG team, who had just landed, immediately entered meeting mode.

Although RNG won all their matches against EDG, the pressure on them was no less than that on EDG's side.

On the one hand, this is a final with no way out, which will determine the champion and the MSI spot.

On the other hand, it's all because of one person.

"Phi, he's a point we absolutely have to address." RNG coach Tabe projected the data from Mingjing's three losing games onto the screen.

11-0-6
10-0-4
4-0-6
Not dying once in three games and completely dominating the opponent is truly an exaggerated performance.

Moreover, FPX wasn't entirely without plans to target him.

In the final game, the FPX players seemed to be possessed, relentlessly targeting the mid lane, resulting in a crushing defeat as all three lanes were breached!
All we can say is that we should thank FPX for setting a bad example for them, letting them know just how amazing Phi is as a mid laner, and giving them a chance to prepare.

“I think FPX’s strategy in the last game was absolutely wrong.” Tabe’s Mandarin had a very obvious Hong Kong accent: “We didn’t need to target Phi at all. You can’t suppress a player like that. As long as he finds an opportunity, he can immediately rise again.”

"So in the upcoming finals, we will stick to our own style of play and focus on the top lane."

"But Phi's mid-lane style is very aggressive. He takes the laning phase very seriously, and usually only starts roaming and coordinating with his teammates after crushing his opponent in lane!"

Tabe emphasized, "Therefore, we may need to make a slight change to our mid-lane champions. We may not be able to pick the mage-carry champions we used to."

RNG's mid laner Cryin understood the coach's meaning and nodded.

He had also watched the defeat, so he knew how outrageous Phi's laning phase was.

Especially in the first game, Doinb played Viktor and got a godlike kill by Ahri, which put Cryin under immense pressure.

Because he also plays Viktor.

He rarely participates in the tempo of RNG. He usually picks late-game carries like Viktor, Orianna, and Corki. He follows the tempo in the early game if he can, and farms if he can't. In the late game, he plays the role of dealing damage.

If he were placed in the first game, he doesn't think he would perform better than Doinb.

Mage-centric heroes are still too passive. Facing top mid-laners, even getting through the early game is a problem. If they are facing a laning monster like Phi, it would be better to just shut him down!
"Come on, Yuan Chengwei!" Xiao Hu patted Cryin on the shoulder. "You're under a lot of pressure in the final. But as long as you can hold on, we can win!"

Xiao Hu can completely understand Cryin's pressure.

After all, he's a veteran mid-laner who once faced off against peak Faker in Season 6, so he knows how terrifying such a talented laning monster can be.

In S6, Xiaohu was the loser, becoming a stepping stone for Faker to achieve a Grand Slam and establish a dynasty. But this time, he hopes his younger brother can win.

Cryin listened to his older brother's words and nodded solemnly.

It was 4:30 PM on April 14, 2021.

It's another weekend, and the LPL Spring Split has reached its final day.

RNG vs. EDG, the long-awaited clash between the "Pig and Dog" (a play on words, referring to the rivalry between RNG and EDG), has already filled the LPL official live stream with viewers eager to watch this epic showdown between LPL teams.

Long queues had already formed at the entrance of the Optics Valley International Tennis Center. Seven thousand spectators entered in batches in an orderly manner, maintaining a one-meter distance from each other, as required by policy.

The parents and Wang Hao entered the venue in batches using their respective tickets.

All three tickets came from Ming Jing, and their seats were naturally next to each other.

At first, the father thought the young man wearing a mask next to him looked familiar, but after looking at him several times, he realized that he was his son's classmate.

In addition to the live audience, there were also quite a few secondary streamers from various platforms.

The JDG team on the Douyu platform had been preparing for a long time, and they were analyzing the data of both teams in the finals provided by the broadcast director.

Both teams secured first and second place in the regular season. Although EDG lost to RNG 2-3, they then won 3-0 in the final to boost their stats, resulting in both teams having roughly equal statistics.

The player data is quite interesting. The director added a top-jungle affinity rate for RNG's jungler Wei, which is calculated as the percentage of time the top and jungle players spend within 1500 yards in the first 15 minutes.

Wei's affinity rate with Ueno is as high as 17.3%, which is a rather humorous figure.

It's important to understand that a jungler's primary task is always clearing jungle camps, and ganking is secondary. This 17.3% affinity rate is actually quite impressive.

Even for Faker and Bengi in S6, the mid-jungle synergy rate was only 15%, and that was for the mid-jungle positions where the synergy was even closer.

In a horizontal comparison, JieJie and Flandre only gave Ueno a paltry 6% affinity.

This reveals the tactical focus of both sides, and Wei's reputation as a tiger defender is well-deserved. The director then showed the data of the mid-laners from both sides, which surprised everyone again.

Cryin's stats are fairly average: a KDA of 5.1 and an average kills of 3.2, both ranking fourth among mid-laners; and a damage share of 26.1%, ranking ninth among mid-laners. It's neither good nor bad.

But on the other hand, the data is a bit surprising.

"A K/D ratio of 41, averaging 8.3 kills and 31% damage share!" Toothpaste laughed when he saw the stats: "Is this K/D even human? It feels like we're not even playing the same game!"

"After all, he hasn't played many games, only three," Zoom explained from the side. "But Mingjing's K/D ratio is indeed quite high. I remember his K/D ratio was also in the teens at last year's World Championship. His mechanics are so consistent, he rarely dies!"

At this moment, Green Hair suddenly remembered something and asked, "Isn't there another player in the LCK with a very high K/D ratio? Is it that Chovy? I remember his K/D was over 100 for a while? I think he was Kanavi's teammate?"

“Yes.” Kanavi nodded, thinking of his old teammate. “I think he died once in eleven games, with a total KD of 104, right?”

When Dani Avery achieved the 100 KDA record, Kanavi hadn't joined JDG yet. He was sitting on Griffin's bench at the time and witnessed it all.

Beside him, the green-haired guy asked slyly, "Is Chaowei more powerful, or Mingjing?"

"Is that even a question?" Watching the video, she exclaimed without hesitation, "Ming Jing is definitely more powerful!"

Kanavi doesn't actually miss his time as a substitute for Griffin, because Griffin inherited the fine traditions of Korean teams, with a particularly strong culture of seniority and hierarchy.

Back then, Kanavi wasn't even qualified to sit at the table with the starting lineup. He could only sit at the table with the second team and eat some leftovers after the first team had finished eating.

In contrast, JD.com is much better. The older generation doesn't engage in bullying, and the younger generation, Ming Jing, is even more formidable, capable of leading him to victory!

Mingjing's strength is beyond doubt. If he had started from the lower level of the regular season, Kanavi even thought that Mingjing's KDA could have broken 100!

However, with only one BO5 left, and it being the highest-level final, the chances are slim.

It's impossible to get a 60 KD in a single best-of-five series, right? That's a bit of an exaggeration.

Besides the JDG players on their second lane, many other people, such as Deyunse and Xuangou, also started the match on time.

Of course, there are also supporters from RNG, such as Zz1tai and Letme, who are players from Royal Never Give Up.

But this time, the second lane of the competition is missing a key player.

A certain streamer, known for his gambling addiction, has been arrested by his uncle, a permanent loss to the LPL secondary commentary community.

At this point, the scene finally switched back to the actual location.

At this moment, it can be seen that the audience has entered the venue one after another, and the stands of the Optics Valley International Tennis Center are full. Countless spectators are ready and waiting for the start of the final battle.

The lights suddenly dimmed, and during the ten-second countdown, a Mercedes-Benz slowly drove onto the stage, showcasing the patron's prestige. Then, the host, Liu Hang, stepped onto the stage and began the opening with a deep, resonant voice:
"Welcome to the 2021 League of Legends Pro League Spring Finals! After nearly three months of fierce competition, the seventeen LPL teams have gone through the regular season and the double-elimination playoffs, and only two teams have emerged to stand on today's stage!"

This time, two team logos appeared on either side of the screen.

"RNG! EDG!" Liu Hang announced loudly, "These two former LPL champions are meeting again in the finals! Let's wait and see who will emerge victorious!"

"Next, let's welcome both players to the stage!"

"First, let's welcome the five members of Royal Never Give Up to the stage! They are..."

"Top Laner: Xiaohu, Jungler: Wei, Mid Laner: Cryin, Bot Laner: GALA, Support: Ming, Substitute: Yuekai, and Coach: Tabe!"

Offstage, countless spectators erupted in applause.

RNG was once a team that dominated the LPL for a year. With its strong marketing capabilities, its fan base was definitely top-tier. However, due to its previous dismal performance, they all pretended to be dead or pretended to be fake fans.

Now that RNG has returned to its peak, finishing first in the Spring Split and advancing to the finals from the winner's bracket, countless RNG fans have naturally returned to the scene!
Of course, RNG's opponents are not bad either.

"And then, it's Edward Gaming!"

Top Laner: Flandre! Jungler: Jiejie! Mid Laner: Phi!

As Ming Jing stepped onto the field under the spotlight, the cheers from the audience suddenly rose to a new level!
In the loser's bracket final a few days ago, Ming Jing silenced all doubts with a near-perfect performance.

Now, everyone is looking forward to his performance in the finals!

Liu Hang waited until the cheers subsided before continuing, "Bottom lane: Viper, Support: Meiko! Then substitute: Scout! Coach: Maokai!"

Below the stage, countless pig offal also shouted at the top of their lungs, coming on fiercely!
When it comes to fan power, Zhu Za (a nickname for a certain group of fans) is second to none!
This, of course, includes Old Pig Zass Song Xuan.

She started paying attention to the competition because of the S6 Summer Finals, where EDG swept RNG 3-0 to win the Summer Championship, which left a deep impression on her.

In later matches, the two teams met again in the S7 Summer Finals, where EDG came back from a 0-2 deficit to defeat RNG 3-2, but it was all just for entertainment.

Now that the two teams have met again in the finals, Song Xuan always has an inexplicable confidence that EDG will not lose.

"Let's invite both contestants to take their seats. The final match is about to begin!"

While the contestants were taking their seats and preparing, the director switched to a pre-recorded promotional video for the finals.

After a brief blackout, the empty Wuhan Railway Station appeared on the screen.

"Our city has been too quiet for too long; it needs some liveliness."

This promotional video showcases the resilience of the city and the LPL during this special period. Anyone who has truly experienced this time can deeply appreciate the difficulties involved.

After the final shouts of "Heroes, see you in Jiangcheng!" from thousands of spectators and the two finalists, the promotional video ended, and the pre-match trash talk between the two players began.

Xiaohu's face, which always makes people laugh, appeared on the screen as he cheerfully said, "Not many people probably expected us to be recording trash talk this time. Hello everyone, I'm Xiaohu, the mid-laner/top-laner for RNG."

Ming Jing also appeared on screen at this moment, with a slight smile on his handsome face: "Hello everyone, I am Phi, the mid laner of EDG."

The audience members below the stage smiled as they watched the conversation between the two.

To be fair, the news of these two players switching positions was arguably the biggest news of last year's transfer window.

At the time, countless people were watching with amusement, since there had never been a record of winning a major championship by switching positions before, and they thought that these two might both fail miserably.

But the result was quite surprising; the two actually met in the final.

As it turns out, the two players switching positions was the right thing to do for the team!
Of course, there will be plenty of memes and references.

Saint Gun appeared on screen with a cheerful expression: "Xiaohu's top lane is indeed very strong because his top lane is a two-man lane matchup."

Xiao Ming chuckled upon hearing this: "Actually, there are three people."

GALA laughed and added, "I heard that RNG plays a four-protect-one strategy, so I came here. I just didn't expect to be the fourth one. But Tiger deserves it."

Xiaohu also clenched his fist, "RNG's four-protect-one strategy will win!"

Cryin then retorted: "Phi only started playing mid lane this year. Is your champion pool really enough? I don't think there's much to study. We can just ban five mid laners and we'll be done."

Ming Jing gave a thumbs up: "Congratulations on finding my weakness! Come and try it out!"

At this moment, the live stream chat was flooded with comments.

【I believe you as a ghost! 】

[Isn't Xiaofei supposed to only tell the truth? Is this kid trying to lie?]

[This guy can practice seven or eight heroes in a month during the World Championship, I don't believe he can be restricted by the ban list.]

[Bro, Xiaofei now plays ranked games with random hero picks and he dominates every single one.]

After the two exchanged jokes, the editor quickly reversed the scene, returning it to the moment when the trash talk began.

But this time, the tone is different; the smoke of battle is beginning to rise.

Meiko was the first to appear, his face serious: "The last time EDG made it to the finals, we also faced RNG, and then we won the championship. I think the script for this time has already been written."

Hearing this, Xiaohu chuckled and said, "There's no need to bring up what happened four years ago, is there? Is there nothing worth mentioning since then?"

Ming Jing appeared on screen, spreading his hands, "I don't know, it seems like I just won a championship."

Xiao Hu's expression suddenly turned serious.

Next up was Xiaoming: "This final was really tough for us, because we've been through a lot. I hope we can win this final."

Next up was Flandre, who adjusted his glasses: "Making it to the Spring Finals for the first time, and qualifying for MSI, is a success."

Xiao Hu also appeared on screen with a serious expression: "To be honest, it's hard for me to define what constitutes success, but I know that from the moment I entered the professional world, my only goal has been to win the championship."

The last person to appear on screen was Ming Jing: "Clearlove played an indispensable role in EDG's past glory. When I joined EDG, he told me that he hoped I could lead EDG back to its peak."

"so."

"Welcome back to the era when EDG dominated."

The audience erupted in applause!
【Tears! 】

【I remember now, I remember everything! I'm not a Parisian, not an Incheonese, and definitely not a royal bastard, I'm a little piglet!!!】

They're back! They're all back! The Ming family's pig farm finally has someone to inherit it!

[EDG, go!!!]

The trash talk segment is over, the final draft phase has officially begun!
(End of this chapter)