LPL History

Chapter 156 A Change of Position, a Sharp Sword Cuts Off Fate; A Change of Flag in the Face of Battle Overturns the Game
October 4th.

The day before the League of Legends World Championship.

Lu Benwei looked at EDG's new team uniform and a genuine smile appeared on his face.

"Wow, Zhou, that outfit is pretty cool, it looks kind of stylish."

Tabe activates his outspokenness skill.

"Flattery."

EDG's new team uniforms are actually not much different.

The only difference is that a lot of logos have been added to the originally blank spaces.

The left chest area features the EDG team logo, while the right chest area now displays the Li-Ning logo.

Meanwhile, the brand logos of Taobao and Yili can also be seen on the shoulders of the team uniforms.

These sponsorships were all secured by Zhou Li during the period after EDG made it to the finals.

Actually, from Zhou Li's aesthetic point of view, the addition of these logos has somewhat diminished the visual appeal of the originally simple and neat team uniforms.

But there is no way.

If you can make money, why do you need good looks?

The feeling of being invaded by capital is incredibly satisfying.

Zhou Li clapped his hands and said:

"Alright, everyone put on your new team uniforms. We're heading to Riot Games headquarters to record some pre-final interview videos."

The group quickly arrived at the recording studio at Riot Games headquarters.

Zhou Li approached the person in charge and said:

"Max, I have a suggestion regarding the video recording. I hope we can record some more relatable clips that reflect the core spirit of our team."

Upon hearing Zhou Li's words, Max smiled broadly and nodded.

The recording team was originally a makeshift operation. His original plan was to have each person record some interview footage and then compile it together. Now that the owner of EDG has his own ideas, there's naturally no problem with that.

Seeing that Max had no objections, Zhou Li immediately got to work.

He pulled Lu Benwei to sit on the sofa and began to speak:

“Now you pretend to be playing on your phone, and then UZI, you walk over from over there into the camera and ask Lu Benwei: Brother Wei, did you drink the Coke in my refrigerator?”

"Then Lu Benwei, you answer UZI..."

After Zhou Li finished speaking, he glanced at Max and his heart skipped a beat when Max spoke.

"Excuse me, could you please tell me their lines in English? That will make it easier for us to add English subtitles in post-production."

"No problem. The line they just said was: 'Hey, did you drink the Coke in the fridge? Don't worry, I've already bought two cases online to make it up to you.' This scene shows the natural, friendly, and close-knit interaction among our team members."

Max took out a pen and paper and wrote it down, while giving Zhou Li high praise.

"Cool! Very lifelike, very natural shots."

five minutes later.

Max looked at Zhou Li, who was standing behind the camera supervising the work, and asked:
"Is this all? Are you sure we don't need to add some interviews with the team members?"

"Okay, thank you very much."

Zhou Li smiled very happily.

Because he had already heard the sound of the gold coins falling into his pocket.

As for recording more interview content, of course, not even a dog would be recorded.

What if they record too much and then cut out his key sponsored content?
He deliberately cut out as little footage as possible to make up enough screen time so that there wouldn't be anything to edit out of the fists.
-
October 5th.

Staples Center.

8pm.

Lu Benwei sat on the sofa, looking down at his phone.

UZI walked in.

"Hey Viagra, did you drink the Coke from my fridge?"

Lu Benwei didn't even look up.

"Wow, bro, it's just a bottle of Coke. Don't worry, I've already bought you two cases on Taobao. It's almost half the price there compared to buying it elsewhere. Just buy things on Taobao."

UZI looked distressed.

"But I want to drink it now."

Lu Benwei took out a bottle of milk from the side.

"Then you should drink Yili milk first. Sitting for long periods of time damages our bones. Drinking more Yili milk can make our bones strong and effective."

At this moment, the EDG team members also came over.

Mingkai asked:
"Boss, we got new team uniforms? They look pretty cool."

Zhou Li subtly tugged at the logo on the chest of his shirt.

"Yes, it's the finals, so we need to change our image. Li-Ning, the pride of Chinese brands, perfectly aligns with our team's philosophy of promoting traditional Chinese virtues."

At this moment, a voice-over rang out.

"Are you confident about the upcoming finals?"

Zhou Li smiled and said:

"Although the Korean teams are very strong, anything is possible."

The interview with EDG ended on the big screen, immediately sparking heated discussions across the internet.

On foreign websites, compared to SKT's formal interviews, EDG's more down-to-earth interview style has received a lot of praise.

However, on the Chinese internet, after EDG's interview video finished playing, the live stream chat was filled with question marks.

Even the commentators in the live stream fell silent.

【? ? ? ? ? 】

【Wait, what is this?】

[66666! Zhou Chu, you're a fucking business genius!]

[They're finally losing their temper. Are they taking advantage of foreigners not understanding Chinese?]

EDG is invincible! Are they even doing product placement at the World Championship opening ceremony?!

[Li-Ning, Taobao, and Yili may emerge as the biggest winners.]

[Wow, I can only say that only Director Zhou would do something like this.]

[I would call this the best advertisement of the century.]

"Hello viewers in the live stream! You are now watching the 2013 League of Legends World Championship! I'm your commentator, Miller!"

"I'm the commentator, Waa!"

"I'm commentator Xiao Cang!"

In the commentary booth, Miller finally emerged from the EDG advertisement.

"Fourteen top teams from around the world gathered in Southern California and, after twenty days of fierce competition, two teams emerged victorious!"

"Now, they will launch their final assault on the highest honor!"

"The two teams are SKT Esports Club from the OGN region! This third seed from South Korea has shown their strong dominance during the World Championship! Fighting their way through the group stage, SKT has only lost one game to EDG! Even in the semifinals against the European powerhouse FNC, they eliminated their opponent with a score of 3-0, advancing to the finals!"

"And the other team is EDG Esports Club from our LPL region! From the beginning of this year, when they defied expectations to win the Spring Split championship, to successfully entering the World Championship, they have fought their way through countless challenges! This tenacious team has also demonstrated their extraordinary strength on the world stage. From the group stage to the finals, like their opponent SKT, EDG has only experienced one defeat, also in their group stage match against SKT!!"

"These two teams are arguably the strongest in the world right now! Their head-to-head record is also evenly matched, one win and one loss each! I believe today's final will be a fierce battle, and as for the final outcome, no one can say for sure until the very last moment!"

Miller's long commentary finally brought the atmosphere in the live stream back from the advertisements.

While Miller was catching his breath, the doll spoke:

"Alright! We can see that both teams' players have now taken to the stage!!"

Xiao Cang stared at the five EDG players, her eyes widening in surprise.

"Hey! We see that EDG made a substitution in today's finals!! White didn't play today! Instead, UZI took the field!! And Lion—he's actually playing as the mid laner!!"

Zhou Li sat in the middle of the group, looking completely at ease.

It would be a real shame not to have a direct confrontation with the seventeen-year-old Lee Sang-hyeok.

Of course, Zhou Li had made thorough preparations before choosing to face off against Lee Sang-hyeok in the middle lane.

Why did he leave the puppy at the club to train it carefully?

This is the day we've been waiting for.

And what he needs to do now is—

Inherited ability: Mid Lane Mastery!
[Mid Lane Mastery: When playing as a mid laner, all attributes such as mechanics, awareness, and reaction time are increased by 10%. All mid lane champions are mastered to perfect level.]

When he first arrived in 13, Shi Ji said that he could choose to inherit three abilities from the previous season.

When IG made its first appearance in the LPL preseason, he chose to inherit the "unparalleled intelligence".

When EDG faced a cyberbullying storm, he chose to inherit the "socialite" title.

He never chose the third successor.

In fact, this is the moment we've been waiting for!
Everyone was stunned when Zhou Li suddenly took the mid-lane position.

Let alone outsiders, even the EDG members who had always placed absolute trust in Zhou Li felt a sense of unease.

After all, they'd never seen Zhou Li play mid lane in the club before. Did he really just pick it up and play it instantly?
This is the World Championship Finals!

Although Zhou Li is the owner of EDG, this is going a bit too far!

Lu Benwei, who was left in the lounge, couldn't understand it at all.

He felt he had always performed quite well, so why was he suddenly forced to sit next to the water dispenser?

Looking at the advertising logo on his clothes, Lu Benwei asked Tabe in a low voice:
"Hey Tabe, do you think CEO Zhou thinks we can't beat SKT, so he's planning to mess around, scam the sponsors out of their money, and then just run away?"

Upon hearing Lu Benwei's words, Tabe paused for a moment before speaking:

"Aren't you Zhou's good brother? Don't you know?"

“Wow, bro,” Lu Benwei patted Tabe on the shoulder, “you and I are the real bros.”

Tabe smiled. "What did you just say?"

"I was saying, is President Zhou planning to scam the sponsors and run away with their money...? Why are you filming this video? Hey bro, I'm just kidding!!"

In the domestic live stream, the three were still having a heated discussion about EDG's roster change.

"Changing players at the last minute is a major taboo! Although I really want to trust Zhou Li, I have a question: have you ever seen him play mid lane?"

Upon hearing Miller's words, Wawa and Xiao Cang shook their heads like rattles.

"Never seen it before."

The viewers in the live stream went wild.

What's going on? Why did they suddenly change seats?

【No, what is Zhou Chu planning now?】

[It seems Zhou Chu is getting arrogant. Faker is still the best mid laner in the World Championship so far.]

I'm fed up, this is messing with my mentality.

[Hilarious! They told you to support EDG!]

Meanwhile, in the Korean live stream room...

Quan Yongjun also asked in confusion:
"Wow, Lion's in the mid lane? So does that mean he can play mid?"

Kim Dong-jun said with a smile:
"I don't know! I checked his detailed information before. He has always played the ADC position since his debut game."

He then looked at Lee Hyun-kyung and said sarcastically:

"Perhaps our Xianjing knows something?"

Lee Hyun-kyung quickly shook her head: "I don't know. How would I know?"

Zhao Enjing pursed her lips.

Installed.

Still pretending!

The media has photographed you staying at the hotel where the EDG team is located for the past few days, and you haven't even left the hotel for five days.

Do we need to guess what they went to do?
“But then again!” Quan Yongjun analyzed seriously, “Actually, I think it’s a good thing for us if Lion moves to the mid lane!”

"First of all, Lion is an excellent ADC player, that's for sure. In the group stage match, Piglet was actually at a significant disadvantage against Lion. But we have to question how well he plays mid lane."

"Furthermore, I think we can completely trust SKT's mid laner. This is not just about trusting Faker's individual ability, but also about trusting Bengi! We know that Bengi really likes to gank the mid lane. If Lion is in the bot lane, he might be overlooked, but if he's in the mid lane, I believe Bengi will definitely not let him have an easy time."

Meanwhile, netizens on Korean websites were also discussing the matter extensively.

[Ugh, this brat really knows how to get attention.]

[Did he intentionally switch to mid lane to lane against Faker? Faker is going to crush him!]

Don't worry, Faker is currently the strongest mid laner in Korea!

[I hope to utterly slap Lion's face!]

SKT players' bench.

Upon seeing Lion's ID appear in the mid-lane position, Teacher DaMu immediately shouted excitedly.

"Oh! Sang-hyeok! This devil seems to be after you this time!"

The idiot chicken also spoke up:

"Don't be afraid, Sang-hyeok, I'll help you."

Lee Sang-hyeok pursed his lips and said:

"Ah, I'm not scared."

Only Piglet's face showed a happy smile.

"Speaking of which, this kid is really arrogant."

Daiki started complaining.

After all, everyone knows that SKT is a team centered around the mid laner.

EDG was previously considered a team centered around its bottom lane.

EDG's move this time felt like they were using their own weaknesses to attack the opponent's strengths.

"Be careful," the dumb chicken warned. "This kid always manages to pull out something weird, so don't let your guard down."

At this point, both sides had entered the business plan (BP) phase.

Blue side EDG, red side SKT.

Xiao Cang's excited voice rang out from the commentary booth.

"The draft phase has already begun! EDG has chosen to ban Vi and Shen first! These two picks were definitely a must-ban."

"SKT, on the other hand, has banned Thresh and Renekton!!"

"EDG's last ban was on Bengi's Lee Sin, who had performed brilliantly at Worlds, while SKT banned Annie..."

Miller's eyes lit up.

"Eh! So Zed is allowed to be picked off!! SKT, as the red side, didn't even try to ban Zed! Did they think EDG wouldn't take him?"

The child thought for a moment and then began to analyze:

"I think that's probably what SKT was thinking. After all, Lion had never played mid lane before, and Zed is a more difficult champion to play compared to the traditional way. If EDG didn't pick him, then SKT could... wait, they locked him in! EDG didn't even hesitate, they locked in Zed instantly!!"

"Oh!!"

When EDG locked in Zed, the audience gasped in surprise.

"Looking at how quickly EDG locked in Zed, they seem very confident! However, for this rookie mid laner Lion, everything about him is unfamiliar to us, and to be honest, I'm a little nervous."

As soon as Miller finished speaking, SKT immediately locked in two champions: Corki and Jarvan IV.

"Let's see what EDG's next pick will be... Elise! Elise is definitely a good choice. Clearlove has been playing Elise a lot lately, and he's picked a champion he's very familiar with."

Then, EDG locked in the Weapon Master on the third floor!
This weapon mastery was something Zhou Li had arranged for Shen Chao to receive special training in advance.

There are absolutely no issues with proficiency.

"EDG's Jax pick was well-thought-out. Other teams would ban Jax when facing SKT, and I was wondering why EDG didn't ban this champion today. Turns out they were planning to play it themselves."

The right to choose has returned to SKT.

Seeing EDG lock in Jax, DaMu sneered in dissatisfaction.

"Jax? Ugh, he's really annoying."

The silly chicken laughed and said:

"Maybe they forcibly took it from you to prevent you from playing, and they might play terribly."

Lee Sang-hyeok said, "How about we get the Rambo robot?"

Daiki appeared very confident and began to speak:

"No problem at all."

"SKT chose Rumble to counter Shenchao's Jax, and then they locked in Zyra!"

The right to choose has returned to EDG.

EDG's strategy was clearly defined, and they locked in Sona and Vayne at the end.

SKT locked in Gragas as their last pick.

Miller analyzed SKT's player selection:

"Using Gragas to gank Zed seems like a pretty good choice. In this version, traditional mages face a lot of pressure from Zed, but Gragas has a damage reduction skill and is also better suited for ganks with the jungler. I feel like Lion still has to go for Bengi's ganks in this game."

At this point, the lineups for both sides were completely finalized.

Blue side: EDG eSports Club VS Red side: SKT eSports Club.

Top Lane: (godlike) Jax vs. (impact) UZI.

Jungle: (clearlove) Elise Queen VS (bengi) Jarvan IV.

Mid Lane: (Lion) Zed vs. (Faker) Gragas

ADC: (UZI) Night Hound VS (piglet) Corki.

Support: (fZZF) Sona VS (PoohManDu) Zyra.

As both sides entered the loading screen, Miller's tone rose several octaves uncontrollably.

"Ladies and gentlemen! The draft picks for both sides are now complete!"

"We are about to witness the first clash between the world's two top teams on the World Championship stage!"

(End of this chapter)