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Chapter 126 I'm Pleasing Myself! (6.2k views, please subscribe)
When the more than 18,000 audience members heard Li Fan's words, only one word came to mind: arrogant!

So crazy!
That's insane!
“I am indeed very presentable.”

This statement, devoid of any humility and even carrying an air of self-righteousness, exudes an unimaginable confidence and domineering presence at this moment.

After a brief silence, like a volcanic eruption, the entire Nanjing Olympic Sports Center burst into a frenzy of cheers and screams that could lift the dome!
"Aaaaaaah—Unreal! Unreal!"

"You're truly outstanding! That's right, you're the most outstanding mid-laner, which is why you deserved two awards. You deserve it."

"I love players who are this arrogant, what's with the modesty! Unreal, I love you!"

The fans at the scene, especially the girls holding Unreal light boards, were hoarse from shouting, but they didn't care and still shouted with all their might.

Of course, some people still dislike this lack of humility. They think, "It's just saying a few polite words. What good will it do if you're not humble? There's no need to be so arrogant."

But at this stage, no one cares about their thoughts.

Since Li Fan was already on the podium, the awards were given to him by the authorities.

Especially with the finals just around the corner, he still believes in himself and isn't afraid of being proven wrong later.

At this moment, it has become an extremely charming personal quality!

This stands out as extremely unique in the incredibly humble world of LPL professional matches.

He's obviously ridiculously strong and has a lot of confidence in his abilities.

As for the live stream, the chat exploded at this moment, scrolling wildly.

Holy crap, you can show off like this? Even though it's just one sentence, I think it's more domineering than a thousand.

[This is impressive! Hahaha, to be honest, only Unreal Engine would dare to say that. No one else would dare to say that; at most, they'd thank this person or that person.]

This newcomer is just the right fit. The LPL needs players with personality like this. If all players were like this, we wouldn't still be without a World Championship title.

[Where's WE? WE fans, did you hear that? They said they're pretty good, what about you?]

[The pressure is all on Xiye now. If he doesn't crush Unreal, he'll be directly mocked, and I feel like he'll be torn apart by the fans.]

I don't know why, maybe it's because of the addition of Unreal Engine, but I feel this year has the best chance of success.

[But... is it really reasonable to give both awards to Unreal? It seems a bit outrageous. Is the official decision just based on popularity? Are they making such a controversial decision because they think Unreal is more popular?]

[Then name an uncontroversial player? Doinb has the most regular season MVPs, but he was just a nobody who got kicked to death in the top six. How did he deserve the regular season MVP?]

[Since he can say something like that, even if we lose this match today, I'll still support Unreal!]

[The other professional players are all so fake. They clearly think the opponents are noobs, but they don't dare to say it and just pretend to play along.]

It's good to be young; young people don't have all these complicated feelings.

Xi Ye, who was in the backstage dressing room, kept clapping when he saw this scene.

"This guy is really something, he can talk a good game! I really want to learn from him, but I just can't seem to get it."

"Indeed... pretty arrogant." Condi couldn't help but agree with Xiye, thinking about the trash talk they filmed yesterday.

I thought it was incredibly amazing at the time, but when I finally got it, I realized that even a casual remark from this guy could be amazing.

“Perfect timing, he’s not exactly impressive, is he? We’ll see how impressive he really is later.” 957 egged Xi Ye on from the side.

"Get out!"

"Hahaha……"

At this moment, the WE backstage lounge became incredibly joyful.

After all, it's better to prove yourself in the competition than to just talk about it.

On the other side, in the EDG lounge.

Coach Abu covered his forehead: "This kid... he dares to say such things. If he wins, he'll be hailed as a god; if he loses, he'll be torn to shreds."

The factory manager looked at the screen and said, "He's already said so much trash talk before the game, so it doesn't really matter if he says this again. He's still pretty immature. He's still young after all."

On stage, Ren Dong was also taken aback by Li Fan's unexpected answer, but with his experience, he immediately smiled and replied, "Great! A very confident answer! Just as you said, you and the EDG team have come this far, making you the most outstanding team this season! Let's see if you can be the most outstanding team today!"

At the end of the interview, Li Fan bowed deeply to the audience.

This bow once again drew a deafening roar.

Its popularity has reached an absurd level.

If this player can win the championship today... then the extent of their popularity will be unimaginable.

Many companies watching the game immediately spotted Li Fan... Such a confident professional player looks sunny and charismatic, so endorsing clothes or something like that would be very effective.

Ren Dong guided the flow of the performance, asked Li Fan to go backstage to prepare, and announced the opening performance segment to follow.

Members of a sub-unit of the well-known domestic girl group SNH48 took to the stage in eye-catching outfits, and a vibrant dance began as the music started.

They danced really well, and the girls were very cute.

However, at this moment, the audience's minds were already on the upcoming showdown.

Compared to the real, fiercely contested Silver Dragon Cup, which carries honor and dreams, all of this seems utterly uninteresting.

"EDG! Come on!"

"WE! We will win!"

Scattered slogans began to rise from the stands, quickly merging into a chorus that even drowned out the music on stage at one point.

However, they failed to consider the good intentions of the authorities.

After all, the ticket costs over 400 yuan. Wouldn't it feel like a waste to only watch one game? Adding a performance makes it feel like you're watching a concert. It's worth it to have both a game and a concert.

The girl dancing and singing above also felt quite embarrassed at that moment.

Are they really that unattractive?
The fans below the dance floor, who were usually screaming and shouting, started to cheer.

But to my utter surprise, no one cheered for me this time...

Outrageous!
As expected of a gamer, all he thinks about is gaming competitions.

[Fast forward to the draft phase! Fast forward to the match!]

[The performance was very good; please don't perform before the finals next time.]

[Seriously, do the producers really not know what we want to see? What were they thinking with such a long segment?]

[I'm not interested in seeing girls, I just want to see what Unreal Engine can offer.]

Please, let the match begin! I can't wait to see how Unreal will prove what they said in their pre-match interview.

[As expected, pre-match entertainment is essential for a good show.]

Meanwhile, both teams were already backstage preparing.

We waited for the final to end before entering the venue, introduced by the host.

As the SNH48 members finished their performance, the stage lights once again focused on the host, Ren Dong.

The previously scattered attention was instantly drawn back; everyone knew the long-awaited moment was finally here. Hadn't everyone traveled so far for this very moment?
Ren Dong, microphone in hand, walked steadily to the center of the stage, a smile on his face but his voice full of power.

"Welcome back, Summoners both at the venue and watching on screen! The ultimate battle between EDG and WE in the 2017 LPL Spring Split Finals is about to begin!"

"Wow--!!!"

He was met with thunderous cheers and applause, which swept away the dullness of the previous performance and instantly brought the atmosphere of the entire Nanjing Olympic Sports Center to a climax.

It's clear that the show just now really made the audience feel depressed.

Compared to the competition, there's really nothing to watch.

"First of all, please welcome EDG team coach—FastStar!"

The spotlight shone on the entrance passage, and the fast-paced star walked out quickly and waved to the audience.

"Top laner—mouse!" Ah Guang's figure followed closely behind Quick Star, his cheerful demeanor quite distinctive.

"Jungler—Clearlove!" The moment the factory manager's ID was announced, the atmosphere at the scene instantly became heated.

As a key figure in the LPL, his popularity is undeniable.

The factory manager walked out calmly, a slight smile playing on his lips.

Immediately afterwards, Ren Dong's voice suddenly rose in pitch:

"Mid laner—Unreal!!!"

"Unreal! Unreal! Unreal!"

Countless fans, especially female fans, shouted his ID at the top of their lungs.

The entire venue erupted in cheers!

The enthusiasm built up during the previous interviews was fully unleashed at this moment.

Li Fan walked out of the passage, and under the spotlight, he still had that calm and confident look.

Here they come! Their best performer has arrived.

[Leaving aside other aspects, his looks are undeniably striking, and he looks even more handsome under these lights.]

The pressure is now on Xiye's side, haha!

We'll see if he really performs as well as he claims in the competition.

[Whatever, Unreal Engine will be all about taking action from now on!]

Following Unreal, Ren Dong continued, "ADC—Zet! Support—Meiko!"

The entire EDG team lined up on one side of the stage.

"Next, let's welcome their opponent, Team WE!"

"Coach Redmi, Top Laner 957, Jungler Condi, Mid Laner Xiye, ADC Mystic, Support Ben!"

With each name announced, the area dedicated to WE fans erupted in cheers that were just as loud as before.

After both contestants took the stage, they stood facing each other on either side of the stage, at which point the director zoomed in with a wide shot.

At the center of the stage, the Silver Dragon Cup gleamed under the lights, radiating an alluring glow.

For the young WE team, the allure of this trophy is still very strong.

The same applies to Li Fan, a contestant who has never won a championship.

He stared intently at the Silver Dragon Cup.

It originally weighed three pounds, but due to a mistake, it became thirty pounds.

Li Fan really wanted to try carrying the 30-pound weight and experience what it felt like to carry such a trophy.

Ren Dong announced in his deep voice, "Heroes, aspiring to legend! The 2017 LPL Spring Split Finals are now officially underway! Players from both sides, please take your seats!"

Amidst deafening cheers, the ten contestants headed to their respective battle stations to begin the final equipment adjustments.

At this moment, the camera switched to the commentary booth.

The official team naturally dispatched their strongest commentary lineup.

The golden duo: Doll Miller and Su Xiaoyan.

Originally, they wanted Rita to come, but Jin Yibo felt that perfection was the best policy. There would be plenty of opportunities to train newcomers later, and if something went wrong in today's match, it would be a big problem.

"Welcome back to the 2017 LPL Spring Finals, Summoners! Hello everyone, this is Wawa!"

"Hi, my name is Miller."

"Hello everyone, I'm Su Xiaoyan."

With a big smile, the doll continued, "Wow! The entrance ceremony and the atmosphere were just incredible! I could feel the whole stage shaking even while I was sitting in the commentary booth. The audience was so enthusiastic!"

Miller chuckled and added, "That's right, and in that pre-match interview, Unreal made a statement that I can really say is worth mentioning. It really heightened the tension and anticipation for today's match! To be honest, the pressure is on him now. We'll see if he can deliver on that promise in the actual game."

"From an objective data perspective, Unreal's performance throughout the Spring Split was indeed phenomenal. Whether it was damage per minute, lane dominance, or teamfight participation rate, he was among the top in the mid lane."

Su Xiaoyan still believes in letting data speak for itself. Good data doesn't necessarily mean someone is strong, but strong people always have good data.

"This is also an important reason why he was able to win both the regular season MVP and the best mid laner award. A person with strength naturally has the confidence to do so."

Wawa nodded in agreement: "Having the confidence is one thing, but daring to say that before the finals is another. This kind of personality is truly unique in the LPL." Miller smiled: "But I think this is a good thing for the league. With topics and conflicts, the matches are more exciting! Don't you think so?"

The audience immediately responded with screams.

He clearly agrees with Miller's statement.

"I think WE's coach, Hongmi, will definitely target Unreal's champion pool. His signature champions, like LeBlanc and Syndra, will likely be banned."

"As for EDG, they also need to be careful of Condi and Xiye's mid-jungle synergy, as WE's early game tempo is very strong."

"Actually, the bottom lane is also a key point."

"The Mystic and Ben duo is in hot form this season, while Zet and Meiko need to hold their lanes and create space for Clearlove's jungle planning and Unreal's roaming."

It was phrased euphemistically, but the point was to hold on until teammates arrived to support us, and not collapse too early.

"In the top lane, it'll come down to who can provide support faster..."

The current version of top lane has shifted back to being more of a front-line tank, meaning that the top laner's role is primarily limited to team fights.

If you can withstand the damage, then your performance in this match is outstanding.

As for top lane Fizz, top lane Ekko...

Are you confident you can crush the enemy Galio? Or perhaps Nautilus or Cho'Gath?

Which stat isn't higher than yours? Which damage isn't more outrageous than yours?

"I feel that this BO5 will not end easily, because the two sides are evenly matched, and it is very likely to go to five games!"

At this point, the large screen had already switched to the BP interface.

"Alright, both teams are ready. The 2017 LPL Spring Finals, Blue side EDG vs. Red side WE, Game 1, the draft phase officially begins!"

EDG usually dealt with Kled... mainly because this champion is quite strong in supporting in the mid-to-late game, and has a strong ability to cut through the backline.

Also, the hero 957 is played exceptionally well; he's one of the few warrior top laners who can pull this off.

"As expected! WE on the red side immediately gave Syndra, a champion that Unreal is very good at, as their first pick. That's a huge sign of respect!" Miller said right away.

EDG responded quickly, banning Condi's signature Lee Sin as their second ban, limiting the Dragon's Heir's ability to find opportunities in the early game.

"Oh? Galio! This very strong support-type mid laner in the current version has also been banned by WE."

"The main reason is that this hero has a lot of flexibility; he's particularly strong in both the top and mid lanes..."

The two coaches then made very obvious moves to target him.

EDG removed Spider, while WE removed Ashe.

Knowing that your only viable champion in the bot lane is Ashe, wouldn't it be stupid not to ban that champion?

They'll air the regular season games, but the finals definitely won't be aired.

The first round of banning players has ended:
EDG banned Kled, Lee Sin, and Elise.

WE picked Syndra, Galio, and Ashe.

EDG still picked Jarvan IV first...

WE's goal is to break through from the bottom lane and take down the powerful poke combination of Varus and Karma.

To be honest, QuickStar's expression was terrible after these two hero picks.

He was very clear about the skill level of the bot lane...

We weren't targeted before, but being targeted now will be a very troublesome thing.

Big Mouth and Lulu make a relatively comfortable stress-relieving combination.

WE locked in Jayce as their third pick, and their mid and bot lane poke composition came into play.

In the second round of champion selection, WE removed Lucian and Taliyah.

This effectively limited Li Fan's laning ability.

As for other heroes, they still face a lot of pressure when facing Jayce.

In this situation, EDG had no choice but to counter by banning Nidalee and Cho'Gath. With Jessie in the mid lane, the top and jungle needed to compensate for the AP damage.

These two are suitable heroes.

But this actually puts them at a disadvantage in the draft phase.

But there's nothing that can be done about it; even the best coach can't change a disadvantage in the bottom lane.

WE really felt like they had EDG in the bag, locking in Fizz in the top lane and leaving the counter pick for the jungler.

Quick Star's expression was terrible at this moment.

But we can only place our hopes on Li Fan.

"The enemy team has Jayce. Should we focus on farming or laning?"

In terms of laning... Jayce is actually a tough champion to play against because Lucian, the best champion to counter Jayce, has been banned.

As for the other heroes, they don't have much of an advantage.

Talon has a hard time against Jayce, and Fizz was picked by the enemy team again.

"Develop...develop using vampires."

With this lineup on the opposing team, the Vampire can dominate freely after 25 minutes.

Quickly, Xing nodded.

EDG locked in Vladimir and Shen in their fourth and fifth picks.

WE hesitated for a long time before picking their fifth jungler... clearly not expecting the mid laner to give up the laning phase.

This still helped Condi get a relatively mediocre jungler, Gragas.

The lineups for both sides have been finalized.

Blue side EDG: Top lane Shen, jungle Jarvan IV, mid lane Vladimir, bot lane duo Kog'Maw and Lulu.

Red team WE: Top lane Fizz, Jungle Gragas, Mid lane Jayce, Bot lane duo Varus and Karma.

The two coaches came to the center of the stage and shook hands.

At this point, Wawa received a prompt from the director and instead of talking about the competition, she changed the subject: "Both sides recorded what they wanted to say to each other before the competition, so let's see what they said."

On the big screen, the first thing that appeared was the factory manager's crooked smile.

"WE has played really well this season, but... we still have more experience. In this final, I will show them that experience counts."

The camera then switched to WE's jungler, Condi.

Condi was clearly amused by the factory manager's words.

"Factory Manager, I want your F6 and your jungle. I heard you want to prove yourself in this final? Sorry, this stage is mine now. You'd better save your skills for running away."

The factory manager was clearly unconvinced by this.

"My running away was just an illusion; I actually dealt a lot of damage!"

At this moment, the crowd erupted in cheers and laughter.

As for going up, A-Guang was clearly a little lacking in confidence.

"957 is very strong, but I've been practicing a lot lately and hope to stabilize his performance."

957 remained calm and spoke in a peaceful tone: "Ah Guang, you're not going to be able to keep this under control. Today I'll show you why everyone calls me Leg Bro."

Mystic (Korean): "Zet is a very solid mid laner... but there's no point in him going bot lane. I suggest you go back to mid lane."

Zet smiled shyly in front of the camera and didn't say anything.

However, you can tell from the lip movements, "Shiba!"

Xi Ye scratched his head: "Actually, Unreal is already very good at playing other games. I still suggest that he switch to other games. League of Legends is not suitable for him. Let me win this competition first. You can go to other games where I don't play and win the championship."

"Wow!"

The WE fans at the scene had already started screaming.

It's somewhat aggressive, but not overly so.

The camera finally focused on Li Fan.

Instead of looking directly at the camera like the others, he tilted his head slightly to the side.

"Win the game?"

He chuckled softly, "This is a piece of cake!"

"As for controlling the game... from the moment I sat in this position, the outcome of the game was already in my script."

"Xiye, WE... they are just supporting characters who put on a more enthusiastic performance in my script."

"I play matches to please myself."

"As for you... just watch."

After a brief silence, there was an explosive roar that nearly lifted the roof off the stadium!
"Unreal! Unreal! Unreal!"

The screams of the enthusiastic fans were almost ear-piercing.

Many viewers, whether they supported EDG, WE, or were neutral, had a complex expression on their faces, a mixture of bewilderment and a strange excitement.

The live stream chat was also scrolling wildly.

【? ? ? ? ? ? 】

[Script? Supporting role? To please oneself?]

[My god! This isn't just crazy, this is terminal chuunibyou!]

[It's so cringeworthy I could dig my toes out of my skin! But... why am I feeling a little excited?!]

That's the spirit! Esports protagonists don't need to be modest! They have to be arrogant! They have to be proud!

[Oh no, I'm getting old and this kind of thing just won me over. When he said it looked good, I got goosebumps, but it was strangely appealing.]

On the commentary desk, Wawa almost couldn't hold back her emotions.

Doll covered her mouth, trying not to laugh too loudly: "Ahem... This... Unreal's pre-match trash talk is really... unique! Very imaginative!"

Meanwhile, on the EDG players' bench.

The game is currently paused...

Because everyone knows that this segment is full of trash talk.

At this point, the factory manager jokingly asked Li Fan, "What were you thinking when you were filming this trash-talking segment?"

"Um... I didn't think much about it. We were just young and impetuous, and we thought we were the ones who were noobs."

"You all know I don't usually say that."

"That's right, that's very energetic!"

"Fuck them!"

WE's match seat.

They were also recalling the footage they had filmed the day before.

"They've treated us like supporting characters. Today, I'm showing you that even supporting characters can defeat the main characters and become the main characters themselves!"

"Haha, it's time to let the screenwriter know that if the supporting actors don't agree, your script can't be filmed..."

At this point, the big screen had already started the countdown.

The pause is about to end.

Both sides immediately got into the zone...

(End of this chapter)